Eclipsed
by SaroksVenom
Summary: The introduction of a third character with a Kamui, a male with no memory prior to receiving his garment and weapons. Join Rou as he searches for his identity and for the meaning of his existence. Ryuko/OC. M for stuff that hasn't happened yet, cause I'm bat shit crazy, though I suppose some of it has happened.
1. Prologue: Introductory Remarks

**A/N: Welp. Here I am starting a ****_fourth _****SI project. Discovery is still moving, but it's going pretty slow right now, so I'm going to do something silly and contribute to another little-remarked-upon fandom I like. This might not even get published, based on how it goes. I'm not good at writing dialogue into situations like the ones found in this anime. Oh, and if my Japanese is shit, don't harp on me too much. Before I got into anime, my exposure to the language consisted of: Konnichiwa and Sayonara. Well, that, and some phrases from Clavell's masterpiece known as Shogun.**

_Eclipsed_

_Prologue: Introductory Remarks_

"Well, isn't this quaint," I spoke softly, gazing out and up to the peak of the academy I had just arrived at the base of. "Typical class-based society. Figures that I should have to come here to find out who I am. Isn't that right, Kurai?"

"Surely you mean to find out who _we _are, Rou. Leaving me out of your ramblings does you no good, considering you're stuck with me." I sighed as my only companion rebuked me. Kurai and I had been together for as long as I could remember – in other words, about five months. My earliest memory was of waking up in some dump with Kurai fastened to my body.

Oh, did I forget to mention it? Kurai is a uniform. Well, I say he's a uniform, but really he's a Kamui. At least, that's what he tells me. Then again, I have yet to actually use him, since we haven't met much resistance in the past five months. It must be the inimitable class of wearing an all-black suit complete with a scarlet bow-tie, one side of which had the pattern of an eye on it.

"Yeah, yeah. So what's so special about this Honnouji Academy? I know it's ruled over by the ever mysterious Kiryuin Satsuki, but I'm not sure of much more than that. Really, I just hope we can discover our identities while we're here. Though I suppose that could take a while if this goes as I expect."

Kurai snorted in bemusement. "I think that's a bit of an understatement, Rou. You might want to look behind us, it appears our bike has just been systematically stolen, dismantled, and sold to the highest bidder." Whirling around, I saw my friend was correct, and cursed the sky for being stuck in such a despicable place.

"Well, whatever. What say we head up to the school proper, yeah Kurai? Not that you have much of a choice in the matter." Kurai growled in annoyance, causing me to laugh aloud. Suddenly, my stomach grumbled in protest, and I grimaced before stopping at a nearby vendor to grab a couple of apples.

Once I had eaten one of the delicious fruits, I started on my way up the road when I felt the other fruit slip out of my pocket. Slightly angry, I turned to find the source of my discomfort only to find a small boy gazing perplexed at the food in his hand. "I thought for sure I had his wallet," he murmured, causing me to roll my eyes.

"I don't have a wallet, moron. Feel free to keep the apple too, you look like you could use the weight, runt." The boy snapped his gaze to mine, anger clouding his eyes visibly. I raised an eyebrow when he tried to storm up to me and chuckled darkly when he patted me down to see if my claim was true.

"Huh, guess you really don't have a wallet. But who you callin' runt, asshole?!" The sudden change in demeanor amused me, and I simply turned around with a jaunty wave and continued up the path. "Hey, don't ignore me, asshole! Come on guys, get him!" I sensed a group of three boys of similar stature to the first running at me with various weapons.

Without even looking back, I kicked out with my right foot and flicked my left hand, flawlessly taking out the kids. What surprised me was the first kid bowing to me after somehow rushing ahead of me. "What's the deal, runt? Why are you bowing now?"

"You're stronger than us. We're only good against those that are weak." I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. I should have figured this town would be messed up after seeing how obvious the class separation was. However, before I could respond to the runt, an older girl in a school uniform pounced on him and started to berate him strongly.

"It's too early in the morning to deal with this shit," I whispered to Kurai before stepping over the scuffle and heading further up the hill to the school. My friend laughed at my exasperation, leaving me to sigh again as I finished the trek to the entrance.

(((…***…***…***…)))

Once I walked into my assigned classroom, I knew things were going to be interesting. Right off the bat I could tell that there was more to my homeroom teacher than met the eye, and I was seated right behind another Kamui user, one Matoi Ryuko. What's more, next to Matoi was the girl from earlier, a Mankanshoku Mako. I didn't know how on earth she beat me to the school, but I wasn't about to question things.

When the bell rang for lunch, most of the class left in less than a minute, leaving Matoi, Mankanshoku, and the teacher, Mikisugi, behind. The girl from earlier was fast asleep, and the other two seemed to be arguing about something or another through only their gazes. "Mind telling me why there are two Kamuis in the same room, Mikisugi? I'm getting a weird feeling from you, and typically that means that you know something I don't."

My words startled the two combatants, and Matoi turned to me with an incredulous look on her face. "Easy there, Ryuko," I heard her Kamui soothe, confirming my suspicions about the garments we both wore. "He probably isn't against you."

"Damn right he's not against you. I came here to find out who I am. Well really, who Kurai and I both am. Happy, Kurai? I remembered to include you this time." My partner laughed.

"Yes, Rou, I'm quite happy now. Thank you for your kind words regarding me. Oh, and you might want to address Matoi and her Kamui. They seem to be confused," Kurai replied, reminding me of the reason I spoke out in the first place.

"I suppose I'm not supposed to be able to hear your Kamui, right Matoi? That should be the first clue. The second would be that you can hear mine. Got me so far? Good. Now, let's not do anything hasty, I only want answers from our dear homeroom teacher here. I _really _want to get rid of this feeling."

"Y-Y-You can hear me?" the other garment asked, and I nodded. "Well, that settles it, Ryuko. We have _got _to be friends with those two." Matoi's gaze snapped from Kurai and I down to her Kamui then back to us. I sighed and decided to take the initiative, striding forward and holding out my left hand for a handshake. I'd have used my right, but it was covered by a black glove I was supposed to use to stimulate Kurai into his evolved state.

"Name's Rou. Don't have a surname I'm aware of. Mind if I call you Ryuko? Calling you Matoi just seems so rude if we're going to be friends. Oh, and what's your Kamui's name? Mine's Kuraiketsu, or just Kurai for short."

Matoi's hand shook as she reached for mine, and I grinned in what I hoped was a conciliatory manner. All of a sudden, I felt her fist collide with my face quite hard. Rubbing my jaw in pain, I cracked it back into place and wisely backed up a bit. "Ok, so no handshake. Hmmm, so does that mean I should call you Ms. Matoi then? Unless that punch was your way of saying hi. Whatever, I'll just call you Ryuko."

Ryuko shook her head and came at me again once I had gotten up, but I blocked her punch. "Easy there, Ryuko. I'd really rather you didn't try and hurt me every time you saw me. I'm rather delicate, see." My grin said otherwise as I held her fist to my lips.

"How do I know you're not with that bitch Kiryuin?!" Ryuko yelled, and I sighed.

"Why is it that people _insist _on yelling at this school? Ah, whatever, my answer is that neither of us do. All I want to do is find out who I am – and hopefully find a nice pretty girl to settle down with afterwards. I haven't much else to do since I'm effectively an orphan. Nowhere to go, see."

Ryuko made to punch me again and I darted out of her reach. "Look, if you're so insistent on proving my identity, we can go challenge the esteemed President now. I've never met her, at least from what I recall so far. That's the only way I know of to prove myself, since I don't know anything else about me. That is, unless a certain teacher has the answers," I said, pointing to Mikisugi, who appeared to be creeping away in the midst of our skirmish.

"Ah… uh… I'll be in the faculty lounge. See you after lunch, Ryuko, Rou." Mikisugi sprinted out of the room. Shrugging, I went back to my desk and sat down, groaning when my stomach rumbled unhappily.

"Now I'm hungry again?! Come on, one thing after another with this place. Kurai, you sure there isn't any way for me to avoid both eating _and _starvation?" I asked my Kamui.

"Not that I'm currently aware of, Rou. Perhaps your new _friends _would be willing to share?" Kurai replied scathingly. I frowned at his standoffishness, suspecting the cause fairly easily.

"Hey, don't be like that. I'm not going to just abandon you like that. You're still my best friend." Now that was settled, I turned to Ryuko. "So, uh… Could you help me out? I don't want to impose too much on you, so don't feel obligated to give me much, if any. I can survive a couple days without food or shelter, I've certainly done it before."

"As soon as you issue that challenge, maybe I'll take you up on that, Rou," Ryuko said, causing me to groan loudly again. "Oh, don't tell me you _forgot?! _It was just a minute ago! No wonder you can't remember who you are."

"Hey! I resent that, and I forgot 'cause I'm hungry. And if a challenge is what it takes to get some food, then I'll be glad to. Where can I find this Kiryuin chick, anyway? Will you introduce me?" Ryuko face-palmed and I grinned slightly.

"You're a real pain in the ass, you know that? Whatever, let's go out to the courtyard. Mako, get up, we've gotta go make this fool battle some people." Much to my amusement, the sleeping girl fell over before zipping about the room worriedly, finally settling her gaze on me.

"Oh, you're the new guy, Rou right? Nice to meet you, I'm Mako, hopefully we can be great friends. You've met Ryuko? She's wearing her only uniform, Senketsu. She's a bit weird for speaking to it, and wow you look good in that suit. Is that a new uniform?" The flurry of speech had me gobsmacked before Kurai started laughing uproariously.

"So that's the Kamui's name. Nice to meet you, Sen. Hope you don't mind me dropping the ketsu, not that you can stop me. I love my nicknames, after all. Mako, is it? My suit's name is Kuraiketsu, Kurai for short, and it's my uniform only."

"So you talk to your clothes too? Weird. So what are we doing again, Ryuko? Fighting some more people?" It was my turn to laugh when Ryuko sighed and grabbed her friend by the collar of her shirt, dragging her out the door in the direction of the main courtyard.

Soon enough, the three of us were more or less standing in the center of the massive circular field that was the main courtyard of Honnouji Academy. Suddenly, Ryuko looked toward the tower and shouted some not-so-kind words to get Kiryuin to come out. "Your show now, transfer," she murmured to me before stepping away.

A bright light shone down from the top of the tower, and I supposed it was my turn. "Miss Kiryuin, is it? My name's Rou, and I'm the newest transfer to this school, much as I'd like not to be. Anyway, seems I've got to challenge you to a duel to prove to Little Miss Bitchy behind me I'm on her side. So mind giving me a fight worth my time?"

"Who you calling bitchy, ya bastard!" I heard from behind me even as a set of impossible steps unfolded down to my level. The unmistakable click of heels sounded on aforementioned stairs at the light descended from her tower, stopping a few stairs above me. It was then that I saw the light had quite the body.

I whistled. "Damn, you're a cute one. Well, it's a shame I've got to draw my blades against you. I hate beating up pretty girls." I knew I was pushing it, but didn't have much of a choice if I was going to get my challenge through. Ignoring the large half-black man yelling at me for disrespecting the 'great Kiryuin Satsuki', I held out my hand in what I hoped was a conciliatory gesture.

Slapping my hand away with her scabbard, the girl took the last step down to my level with perfect posture, making me grin in bemusement. "So formal. Well, I've still not heard you say a word. Are you not blinded by my handsome gait?"

The girl snorted. "You're a pig just like the rest, but I suppose I'll have to accept your challenge. No one gets away with calling me something so demeaning as 'pretty.' Prepare yourself, worthless pig."

"At least she's creative," muttered Kurai as I saluted jauntily, stepping back a few paces and pulling my blades from the twin scabbards behind my suit jacket. Two jet black short swords, one brimming with a dark power that evaporated off the tip in an ominous mist. The other seemed to be made of fire, white-hot at that. While the blade itself was still black, the aura surrounding it was the brightest white.

"Oh, you possess the Nisshoku blades? Very good, but you won't last long even with them against Junketsu and Bakuzan." With that, she unsheathed her own sword and flipped the armband I saw on her left arm. Realizing this was my cue to activate my own Kamui, I grinned and pulled a lever on my glove, entering the transformation for only the second time.

Soon enough I found myself in a new form. From the waist down, I was covered by skintight pants, black of course, with jagged streaks of scarlet through the legs. My feet were covered in the usual dress shoes. From the waist up, however, things were much different. My chest was mostly bare, though my upper breast was covered by the expanded 'eyes' of Kurai, which wrapped down and around my sides.

My face was half-obscured by a scarlet mask, leaving only my eyes and cheeks visible, with the straps coming up and over the top of my head. Both arms were coated to the shoulder in black sleeves that ended in a sharp upturn to the back. "Kamui Kuraiketsu!" I shouted for whatever reason. It just felt right.

Even as I transformed the Kiryuin girl was following me, donning her own Kamui. When she settled down across from me, I let out another low whistle at just how little it did for her modesty and unashamedly ogled for a moment before bracing myself for the upcoming battle as she yelled out "Kamui Junketsu!"

"I hope you're ready for the fight of your life, miss. I won't let myself be beaten so easily, and I have a good feeling that this will be quite the battle," I smirked, even though she couldn't see it.

"Ha. We'll see about that, pig. Prepare to die." With that, our conversation stopped as the girl rushed me with her katana, wielding it with an unearthly speed. What really caught me off guard was the shockwave that flew off behind her as she assaulted me with a flurry of blows, leaving me purely on the defensive as I recovered from my surprise.

Suddenly, I felt my feet leave the ground as the Kiryuin slammed her heeled foot into my gut. Luckily, thanks to Kurai, I barely felt the impact, and peeled myself from the wall I had slammed into only to be under attack once more. I sighed at the weariness of it all, lifting the white blade, Sora, in a parry while thrusting with the black blade, Tsuki.

I felt the tip of my blade connect more than saw it, and the prettier one of the two of us widened her eyes in surprise before pressing the attack with an even greater fervor. I smirked under the mask and waited for her to make a mistake, effortlessly controlling the pace of the battle as we destroyed more and more of the walls surrounding the school.

"Alright, well that's enough of that," I spoke at last after Satsuki overextended, leading her off-balance and into a heap on the ground across from me. "Time to go full throttle on your ass. Kurai, ready for Phase Two?" My Kamui made a grunt of acknowledgement as my sleeves lengthened to cover almost the entirety of my blades in a cylindrical armor, creating an effect similar to that of a jet engine with the auras.

"Uchū no Himitsu!" I cried as the auras solidified into spears of white and black, hovering in the air menacingly. Without further hesitation, I slammed them forward into Satsuki, only to find myself lying on my back with her Bakuzan at my neck. "Huh. You blocked or dodged and caught me out because I got too cocky. A loss for me, then?"

"As if you could ever be strong enough to defeat me. Go, pig. I'll even show you the greatest generosity and offer you the same deal I did for Matoi. If you should be able to fight through all in the Elite Four, you'll have your chance at me." I nodded and stood, transforming back into the suit and sheathing my weapons.

"Well, that's that. Ryuko, that enough for you? I'm hungry enough as it is, not to mention beat up from that fight." I turned around, and Ryuko's jaw was hanging open with a slim strand of drool dropping from it. "Uh, Ryuko? You're drooling, and your Kamui doesn't look too happy about getting wet from it."

My words appeared to startle my new friend out of her trance, causing her to glare at me as she blushed and tried to erase the drool from her face. "N-No, I'm not. Do you have someplace to stay while you're here?" I raised an eyebrow at her brashness, and she blushed deeper. I got the feeling she hadn't meant to say that.

Sighing melodramatically, I dropped my head to stare at the ground, scratching behind my ear. "Well, I _was _going to see if I couldn't make a home for myself in some sewer somewhere, but if you have some better idea I'd be willing to hear it. After all, you're much prettier than our dear President."

Ryuko blushed deeper, if that was even possible, and she punched me in the chest, hard. "Hey!" I protested weakly, but she wouldn't have any of it. "You can come home with Mako and me for the night. We'll see how things go from there." I saw Mako nodding furiously behind her friend and smiled, genuinely this time.

"Thanks. I mean it, and without the usual sarcasm," I said, pulling a clearly surprised girl into a hug. "Oh, and don't mind the hug. I've found that I practically live off this kind of comfort, however few times it actually happens. People don't like touching other people, and it's a damn shame when all you need is a hug sometimes."

Releasing the shocked girl after finishing my ramblings, I snapped in front of her face to wake her up. "Oi!" I called as my stomach rumbled painfully. "I still need my food here, and you might as well help me out there as well, since that's what caused this brawl in the first place."

"U-Uh, yeah, here, it isn't much but you can have the rest…" the girl murmured, and I adopted a look of immense satisfaction at the turmoil I caused. Taking the lunch from Ryuko's unmoving hands, I promptly devoured it in prompt fashion, not caring a jot that the croquettes had not finished wriggling yet. It was still delicious, partly because I had eaten much worse over the months and partly because it was given to me by a friend, and I had better be damned grateful. It probably helped that the food really _was _good.

"So. Looks like the bell's about to ring. Think we ought to head back to class so we can grill Mikisugi for information? He looked pretty dodgy earlier, and we can probably corner him if we really try." Ryuko took forcible control of herself when I opened my mouth and smirked evilly.

"I'm starting to like the way you think, Rou. You're my kind of guy." No matter how much I tried not to, I still had to look away at the compliment. For all my apparent arrogance and comfortability in such situations, I was still unable to take a compliment very well if it was genuine. The worst part was that I was unsure whether this applied to me all the time or only just since I had regained consciousness.


	2. Startling Revelations Right Off the Bat

_Chapter One: Startling Revelations Right Off the Bat_

**A/N: I don't normally do this before a chapter, but it's kinda important this time. Some of you are going to be a bit confused about how quickly the pairing takes off. Let me just say I have a plan for it that I hint at late in the chapter.**

"Ready to go?" Ryuko asked, standing over my desk imposingly with a hand on her jutted hip and with a raised eyebrow. It was the same day I had met the girl, and classes for the day had just finished. Predictably, Mikisugi had conveniently disappeared after he dismissed us, presumably to avoid the inquisition, so I sat still as Ryuko attempted to rouse Mako from her sleep.

"Yeah, just let me stretch first. I hate sitting for long periods, makes me antsy." Standing from my seat, I elongated my back, moaning in happiness at the loud cracks that came from my popping vertebrae and the accompanying comfort. Ryuko winced while Mako peppered me with questions about my spine and generally random shit.

"Please don't moan like that again," my friend interrupted the eccentric girl. With a small smirk, I noticed a slight flush to her cheeks, but decided not to be cruel and call her on it. Sighing, I nodded and gestured to the door, making sure to hold it for the ladies.

"After you, my friend. Not that I know where we're going," I said, appending my usual thoughts to the end of my spoken sentence. It was a habit, but my habits made people laugh, something I quite enjoyed. The power of laughter was something special.

"You'll find out soon enough, Rou, don't you worry," Ryuko scolded in mock annoyance. _For people that just met today, _I mused, _we get along rather well. _It was fairly peculiar in my opinion that two people could just 'get along' within hours of meeting and even trust each other as much as Ryuko and I did. I was almost the same way with Mako, and just chalked it up to compatibility.

As soon as we walked into the courtyard, however, I was beamed comically in the face with a baseball. The cruel kind of laughter that could only be issued by an enemy sounded, and I got up gingerly, staring in the direction of the grating sound to find a peculiar sight. A student stood roughly an American football field's length away from me holding a massive spiked bat in one hand and a baseball in the other.

"Ahaha, meet the power of the Grand Slam Goku Uniform, and taste the pain of a hundred super-accurate homeruns, transfer!" Frowning at the student, I assumed that the ridiculous attempt at a Babe Ruth cosplay meant this kid was more powerful than the usual peons. Ryuko prepared to step forward to fight; however, I stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, unsheathing just my Sora blade.

"Jasutisu," I whispered into the hilt, relishing in the righteous feelings that followed as the aura of white light extended outwards about three feet beyond the tip of my blade, coalescing into a near solid beam of energy. Not bothering to activate my Kamui, I strode forward with quite the menacing look on my face. "You, sir, got dirt on my suit. You'll get no quarter from me for that alone, though your surprise attack certainly won't help your case."

Flustered, the student attempted more and more furiously to hit me with baseballs, but I deflected or dodged every one until I stood directly across from him, my expression unchanging. As he turned to run, my blade lanced out and sliced up his uniform. I made sure not to break the skin, but the damage was done and the uniform burst into fabric squares. "Leave. You interrupted my walk with the lovely Ryuko and her friend Mako."

Now terrified, the naked student fled faster than a speeding bullet, and I held the hilt to my mouth once again. "Seigimai," I intoned carefully, and the aura died down to its usual wispiness as I twirled the blade and sheathed it before turning back to my companions. "Does this happen often?" I asked once I reached the still gaping Mako and Ryuko. "As much as I like fighting, that kid wasn't even a challenge."

Mako recovered first, unsurprisingly. "Yeah, Ryuko gets battled after school, during school, before school sometimes too! You can probably expect the same, being new, but wow that was so cool! Just a swish of that white stuff and his Goku uniform disappeared right off his body! It's like the Scissor Blade or something!" I laughed and nodded as Kurai snorted at the girl's enthusiasm.

"Mako, cut the chatter, we'd better go before we're even later getting home than normal. Oh, and Rou, that _was_ really amazing." I looked away at Ryuko's compliment, startled slightly at how she affected me. We had hardly spoken more than a half hour, but already she made me sheepish and nervous. Damn attractive females. Even her personality drew me to her.

Sighing at myself, I followed the two girls into the slums to a quaint little building tucked into a back alley. _Back-Alley Doctor,_ I read with a snort. _Figures_. "Mom, Dad, Mataro, we're home, this time with another friend! I think Ryuko's into him and he seems to be into her, so since he's going to be living with us things might get interesting. Oh, I forgot to mention that, he's like Ryuko cause he doesn't have a home, so I decided he can stay here."

At Mako's introduction of me, Ryuko and I blushed as we stared at each other. "Into him/her?" we questioned under our breaths. I admitted to myself there was a certain allure to the idea, but I couldn't let that get in the way of discovering my true self. To be honest, I was afraid of what I would find, but the biggest reason I wanted to avoid such a situation was that I already felt we were moving too fast. To enter into something romantic would feel false at this point in our short friendship.

My staring contest with Ryuko was brought to a screeching halt with the arrival of the rest of the Mankanshoku clan. The father held out a beefy hand first. Cautiously, I shook it, and he smiled wide while eyeing my suit greedily. "My name's Barazō. My wife is Sukuyo, and this is our son Mataro. Oh, and our dog is Guts. I run this clinic, though I've arguably killed more patients than I've saved." The man laughed, and I sighed at his poor attempt at deflection.

"That's a nice suit you've got there," the wife complimented. "Where'd you buy it?" I frowned and scratched my head.

"This is the only pair of clothes I've got, Mrs. Mankanshoku. It's like Ryuko's sailor uniform." This caused the other two members of the family to stop eyeing my figure while the woman smiled easily.

Without further ado, I was invited inside. For whatever reason, they decided to put me with the girls, and I hastily erected a screen to separate the two genders. This arrangement was weird enough without having to worry about getting slapped for letting my gaze wander about the small room.

(((…***…***…***…)))

That night, after we had all eaten, Ryuko had cast herself a bath and gotten in. Once I had adequately beaten the male members of the family for trying to peep on her, I stripped down to my boxers and unashamedly walked into what passed for the bathroom, ignoring Ryuko's squawk of anger and embarrassment.

"Oi, I'm not so crude as to look at you while you're in the bath. The very thought disgusts me. I just need to shave and brush my teeth," I tried to reassure her, pulling my Tsuki from behind my back and whispering into its hilt. "Jentoru," I intoned, appreciating it with a soft expression as the aura became razor sharp at one side. Continuing to bring it to my face, I silently cleaned my jaw and chin of hair, making sure to cover my upper lip as well.

Once I had finished, I held it back to my lips to whisper the counter-word and placed it gingerly on the ground next to me, pulling the only toothbrush to my name out of my boxer pocket and proceeding to quite vigorously brush. After I was done, I laid my hands on the wall on either side of the mirror and shook physically, tears escaping from my eyes as I fought against myself.

Suddenly, I was enveloped in a hug from behind. Immensely startled, I looked into the mirror to find a towel-wrapped Ryuko had her arms around me. "Wha–" I started, but she dug deeper into my chest, even as she blushed. My shocked expression slowly softened to a smile, and I silently enjoyed the feel of her arms around me in what was my first hug from another living being to my memory.

"Why were you crying?" she finally asked. I sighed in the broken silence, letting myself slide to the floor as she stepped away from me. Leaning against the wall, I bowed my head and thought about how much I should tell her. "I understand if you don't want to tell me." Well, that settled it.

"Have a seat, please. I don't know if I can say this with you hovering over me like this." My sarcasm was weaker than usual, my tone more resigned and tired than anything else. Ryuko caught that this was important, sitting next to me. I kept my hands wrapped around my knees even though we were stiflingly close, our hips touching.

I picked up Tsuki, handing the blade handle-first to my friend. "That sword," I started, sighing again, "and its partner Sora. I get the feeling they weren't mine before I woke up. Hell, I don't even know if my name is really Rou. But those swords, they're a terrible power." I stopped and drew my knees closer, shivering. "Whenever I use them, I have to make myself devoid of emotion because I could be in battle at any moment, but afterwards their effect kicks in."

Ryuko leaned her head on my shoulder and I frowned at the blatant, out of character display of affection, even though it was meant in comfort. From what I had seen, she was a hotheaded, brash, tomboyish sort of girl, so this behavior out of her surprised and worried me that she might be hiding as well.

"What's that?" she asked after a time, and I cursed at myself for letting the silence drag out.

"Whenever I use them, they sing to me, trying to get me to lower my barriers. When I do, even after I sheathe them, they pounce on me. They sing of the most foul deeds they've committed, the worst murders and assaults, the tortures. Sora thinks it's justice, Tsuki just likes the chaos it reaps. And it hurts. It hurts so much to feel the pain and screams of a thousand men, women, and even children."

"Every time I use them, I get a little more afraid that I'll lose my mind before I find out who I am. Every time, I get a little more corrupt-minded, and I even start to enjoy drawing blood when it gets intense enough. Today, when I tore that kid apart, it felt good. I liked seeing the terror on his face, and it finally sunk in that I'm becoming a monster. Kurai isn't much help, he can't really comfort me at all really, though without him I'd be long gone."

"It's more than that, though. When I woke up, I saw the rune on my right hand. I looked into it, and found it's from an Ancient Norse alphabet. Apparently it's the Laguz rune, and it stands for a few things. Emotion. Unconsciousness. Memory. Love. It means nothing to me, and yet I feel as though it means everything in the world. And I'm afraid I'll never find out why, never find out the mystery behind this scar." I held out that hand, glaring at it without any real drive.

I sighed again, drawing a deep breath before continuing. "How am I supposed to live, Ryuko, when I don't know what I want? I barely know how old I am! I push and I push and I push, and I come no closer to the answers. What am I supposed to do?" I finished, letting another tear drop down my face and onto my knees.

Ryuko wrapped her arms around me again, cuddling into my side. "Keep fighting, of course. That's what I do, though I can't imagine what you must be going through. I'm just trying to find out who killed my dad. You're struggling with the worst kind of identity crisis." I snorted and laid my head on hers as she reached for the rune on my hand, tracing it softly with her thumb.

Stiffening, I gasped as images flooded my mind. "What? What is it, Rou?" Ryuko asked, concerned.

"Do that again. With my hand. Please." I near begged, my voice straining with something I couldn't identify. She acquiesced hesitantly, and the images continued, this time at a trickled. Allowing my posture to relax, I laughed lightly. "Thank you," I said. "I don't know how, but I remember some of who I am now."

"Y-You do?" my friend asked, eyes wide in wonder at my change in attitude.

"Yeah," I smiled, kissing her on the cheek, giddy with happiness. "And I found a name. My name isn't just Rou, I've got a last name too! Looks like Isa. Ironic, considering it's the rune for self-identity. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I know so much now, even though I have so much more to learn. You really helped me, and not just with the hand thing." I kissed her again, too happy to really notice anything else. I was pretty overwhelmed with the whole 'I have memories now' thing to worry about anything I was doing to my friend's complexion.

Once I had calmed down sufficiently, I turned my head to press my lips to her cheek again and found myself on her lips. _Well shit, _I thought, my mind back in overdrive, _I probably should have expected this, but still… _The most surprising thing about this experience was that I wasn't the one who initiated it, leaving me quite confused about how to proceed.

While I was deliberating my future actions, Ryuko took the first 'step' so to speak and pushed me over onto my back on the floor before straddling me and crashing her lips back to mine. At this point, I had decided just to go with it, having no previous memory of this happening to draw from. My thoughts continued to roil about in my mind until I felt a tongue slip into my mouth, at which my mind stopped working altogether and I felt a familiar hardness in my general crotch area.

Suddenly, the curtain to the bathroom was thrust open by an enthusiastic Mako, who caught one look at us on the floor and seemed lost for words for once. Coming to our senses, I realized with a jolt that I was poking Ryuko's thigh, and her towel had become a little loose around the chest, causing me to blush and shut my eyes hard. Much to my surprise, Ryuko kissed me again before I felt her weight disappear, though we were all still there.

"U-Uh, hey Mako. What're you doing here?" Ryuko stuttered, and I opened my eyes cautiously. Thankfully, she had refastened the towel about her body. _Nice one, girl, _I scolded her in my mind, _This _is _her own house. I don't think she's going to fall for that question after catching us in such a compromising position._ I was right, and Mako furiously dragged her friend out of the bathroom. Groaning, I sat up as well, leaning back against the wall in an attempt to process what had just happened.

"It seems things just got even more interesting," I murmured, picking up Tsuki off the floor where I had left it, examining the rune on the bottom of the hilt. "Thurisaz. Figures." I snorted at the pure ridiculousness of the situation, closing my eyes again and relaxing my body. Of the images that had flooded through my brain, I found more than a name. I found pictures of a younger Ryuko, and I got the distinct feeling she was very important to my existence, which might explain why we got along so well.

"It may very well be that we have history neither of us remembers," I spoke to myself in the now-cold air in the bathroom. "Hmph. Well, better get ready for the inquisition. Who knows what awaits me when I go to bed tonight. Whose idea was it to put me with the two girls, anyway?" I questioned the air, unsurprisingly receiving no answer. "Whatever. This town just gets weirder and weirder."

(((…***…***…***…)))

After I completed my allotted time in the bathroom, I made my way ever so slowly to the bedroom. With every step, I felt myself get closer to death, even though there really wasn't a good explanation as to why. Luckily, the Mankanshokus had managed to pilfer me a pair of flannel pants for bed, and I donned them after inspecting them for bugs and the like.

Quietly, cautiously, I opened the sliding door to the bedroom, making extra sure not to make a sound as I tried to creep over to my bed in the corner. It appeared as though the girls were sleeping soundly, so I figured I must be safe. However, when I finally reached the screen, fleeing behind it, I eeped at the sight of a stern Mako and an embarrassed Ryuko.

"Well, shit," I said. "I guess it was worth a try to escape this."

"Damn right, mister! Now, you had better not hurt Ryuko while you're together, or I'll come down on you with all the power of her best friend, you hear? And I'm pretty powerful when I want to be! And I better not catch you two on the floor again, if you want to do something like that use a bed or you'll be in danger of catching cold!" What?

"What?" I repeated the sentiment, a little confused that she would be so accepting. "But – what?" Unfortunately, my question went unanswered as the girl marched around the screen, only stopping to tell us to talk it out. "But – what?" I said again, even though it was just Ryuko and me behind the screen. She was dressed in pajamas that I assumed had been Mako's, and even though she looked pretty cute in them, I focused on her face.

She was blushing heavily, looking anywhere but my eyes as she held her other arm across her chest. "So," I initiated the conversation. "How would you like to be my girlfriend?" That wasn't what I had meant to say, but those words were the ones that came out first. Groaning on the inside as my face shone red on the outside, I waited for her reaction to my brazenness, looking out the window to distract myself from the heavily awkward situation I now found myself in.

"A-Alright. Just don't think I'll be letting you kiss me like that again for a long while, got it?" I started at the abrupt change in demeanor, and looked at her with wide eyes. She was still nervous to be sure, but a fierce determination stared right back at me and I smiled slightly before her words registered.

"Wait! You're the one who kissed me if I recall! I was aiming for you cheek! And then you straddled me and all that and how is that my fault?!" I near shouted, incredulous.

"You're the guy, so obviously it's your fault!" she spat back at me like it was clear, and I threw my hands in the air.

"Whatever. Can I at least hold your hand and hug you whenever I want? Well, whenever we're both clothed? That's more than enough for me," I replied somewhat normally, though there was a bit of desperation there I didn't quite understand. Staring at Ryuko, she blushed again and nodded, though again I didn't know why exactly.

"Good. Now come here, I want to hug my girlfriend before she goes to bed." When she made no inclination to move, I sighed and jumped at her, pulling her into a hug. "There, now go. We have school in the morning and I want to talk to Kurai for a bit." She hmmed in agreement and walked around the screen. I sighed again, running a hand along my scalp in exhaustion.

"So I take it you two finally decided to mate?" Kurai asked, and I glared at him. "Sen and I had long since seen the signs."

"Shut up, you. She traced the rune on my hand and I remembered some stuff. My name is Rou Isa. Ryuko is somehow important to me, even discarding all this new shit we've gotten ourselves into. I remember a lab, and a roiling mess of bright light. I also remember where I was when I woke up, unfortunately."

"Oh? And what's the name of the mystery location you found me in?" my oldest friend asked. I took a deep breath before responding.

"It was the Matoi house. I don't know how I know that, but I do, and it's so confusing. Whatever, I'm going to have to sleep it off. Goodnight, Kurai."

"Goodnight, Rou."

Laying down on the mat that served as my bed, I pulled the covers over my head and curled into a ball. I had a lot of information to process, not the least of which was the twelve-hour whirlwind of a relationship with Ryuko, who I had memories of that didn't make any sense. She said herself she had never met me, and yet we got along so well. Almost as if we knew each other before all this.

I took a few more deep breaths and settled down, closing my eyes and filling my mind with the scene from earlier – before Mako interrupted – to get myself out of the loop of confusion I was stuck in. It was going to be long time before I knew everything about my past, but at least I knew I was in the right place – with the right people.


	3. I Certainly Didn't See That Coming!

_Chapter 2: I Certainly Didn't See That Coming!_

It's been a week, and what a week indeed. It's felt like months, but only a mere seven days have passed since I arrived at Honnouji Academy, thrust into a veritable tornado of emotion and experience like none I had ever felt. Within half a day of arriving, I had found myself a girlfriend, one whose hand was entwined with my own as we made our way home after another day at that peculiar fortress that was our school.

Ryuko Matoi. The source of most of my confusion, the girl next to me caused flutters in my stomach no matter how twisted her scowl of the moment was, and when she smiled – wow. The weirdest part about our companionship was the suddenness of it. Before meeting Ryuko, I had never had any contact with a female outside of a handshake here and there as I travelled. Even when the females in question tried to initiate something with me, I was never interested.

Why then, was I so enamored with Miss Matoi? From that first experience in the bathroom, I knew for certain that she was somehow important to me, but I wasn't sure how. Did I know her before I lost my memories? If so, why doesn't she remember me? Moreover, why is it that we aren't the only ones who get along so well, our Kamuis do as well? They even have the same general color scheme!

_Whatever, _I thought, brushing off my perplexed mood. _I'll figure out the answers at some point. What matters is that I'm happy, something new for once. _I had always been content with my quiet way of life, but I had never experienced the joys of a human companion, not that I begrudged Kurai with any blame. It certainly wasn't his fault we found each other bound together when I awoke, and he had as little memory as I did.

"So," I spoke, a wry smirk on my face, "Ready for another spar where I kick your ass, Ryuko?" In the short time we had been together, the two of us had decided to hone our skills against each other without the benefits of our Kamui transformations – though this was mainly done to avoid destroying too much of the slums – and up to this point I had only lost once in the first battle. I had underestimated my girlfriend's fighting capabilities and ingenuity and very nearly caught a nasty scar from the event.

At least, I hoped it was a scar. I seemed to heal unnaturally fast from wounds that would be deadly on a normal person. As handy as that is, scars are awesome and remind you of memories. Come to think of it, why didn't the scar on my hand go away as time progressed? Ryuko's voice brought me out of my thoughts. "You wish, Isa. One of these times I'll get you, and then where will you be?" I barked out a laugh.

"Probably at your side, of course. I'd much rather be your equal than your superior, and truth be told, the only reason I beat you so often is my tendency to avoid damage whenever I can while you seem to enjoy taking hits. Have a fetish or something, dear?" Ryuko choked at my seemingly innocent question and used our hands to beat me, even as I laughed hysterically.

"Oi, Mako, help me out here! Ryuko's going bat-shit on me again!" I managed to get out, directing my statement to our mutual friend. Mako looked at us, smiled as usual, and waved to me in a clear gesture that said she wouldn't be helping me get out of my own mess. I sighed mentally and braced myself.

Suddenly, at least for Ryuko, I fought against her next hit and drew her in close, smoothly kissing her on the cheek and then falling over when she stomped on my foot. "Ow, what the hell was that for?! I thought that was well executed!"

Ryuko grinned at my pain and sweetly replied. "It was, _dear. _You just left yourself open is all." I groaned and picked myself up, reaching out with my hand again. When Ryuko made no move to fill it with hers, I grumbled a bit and put it in my pocket, slouching forward slightly and kicking pebbles along the path to Mako's house. I knew I deserved it, but that didn't exempt me from some good-natured pouting.

After what seemed like an eternity, we arrived at the house, proceeding like normal up to the evening, where things got a little interesting. As they usually did, the males of the Mankanshoku family attempted to peek at Ryuko as she was changing out of Senketsu to get into the bath, or into pajamas, leaving me to beat them up for her. One of these days I had the feeling I'd have to really threaten them, but I suspected that day would be a long time coming since they had toned it down in the wake of our announcement.

Once we were all in bed for the night, I laid my hands behind my head and stared at the ceiling, frowning severely as the questions burning in my mind made themselves known again. "What am I?" I asked under my breath. "I know my name, and I certainly _feel _human, but I have a weird feeling about all this…"

As I silently reflected on the past week, I felt a presence snuggle in next to me. Startled, I glanced over and smiled warmly at the adorable sight of a sleepy Ryuko. "What's up?" I inquired, grabbing her hand in one of my own. "Nightmares again?" She nodded, and my grin faltered a bit. Over the past week, we had found solace in the other's bed on occasion, both of us having nightmares of what was to come or what had long since passed.

"Come here, then," I nearly cooed, dragging her closer to me and under the thin sheet that served as my blanket. "I love holding you, and sleeping next to you always keeps the pain away." My girlfriend hummed in contentment and snuggled into my side, falling right back asleep without another word. Looking up at Kurai and Sen, both of whom were hung across from our beds, I was treated to the peculiar sight of two Kamuis _winking _at me. I snorted slightly, careful not to disturb the sleeping Matoi and leaning my head against hers as I too drifted off to sleep.

(((…***…***…***…)))

A blaring alarm woke us from our slumber, and Mako was on top of us in an instant, pulling us both out of bed with supernatural strength. "Get up, get up, oh god, we're so going to be late, and this is the worst day to be late…" and so on and so on. Looking to where our outfits usually hung, however, we were shocked to find neither of them there.

"Uhh… Mako?" I stopped her tirade mid-way through, causing the over-excited female to blink at me owlishly. "Where are Kurai and Sen?" Her mouth made a comical 'o' of realization, and she led us to her mother, who was washing the garments, both of whom were screaming in pain from the process.

Groaning, I turned to Ryuko. "Looks like we'll be without our Kamuis for a bit. It's a good thing that we've been training without them, right? Then again, I suppose it's also pretty good that way since I've bulked up a bit. Going out in public without a shirt would normally bother me, but now I'm confident enough in my appearance…" I trailed off at the thunderous glare afforded me by Ryuko.

"Don't worry, you two, I'll have these to you soon enough. In the meantime, you ought to go, it's No-Late Day after all." Sukuyo reassured the pair of us, though I supposed it was more for Ryuko's benefit than mine.

"Oh! I almost forgot to panic! Come on Ryuko, Rou, we can't be late today or else we get expelled from Honnouji!" I frowned at the backwards logic before shrugging. Well, I tried to shrug anyways, but Mako had grabbed the two of us and was already out the door. Soon enough we were being carried on the backs of a hundred students, Ryuko riding the case for her scissor blade while I just dealt with it the best I could since I didn't have anything quite as stable as that.

Luckily, as we were leaving, I had managed to don my blades in an alternate fashion, having one over each shoulder instead of horizontally over my back. Without Kurai, it was more comfortable this way, and I had no real reason to try and keep the things hidden in any case. All of a sudden, however, a massive battering ram-like device burst through a row of slums, topped by the Disciplinary Committee Chair Ira Gamagoori.

Spotting us, the hulk of a man beckoned us to the top of his tower. I glanced at Ryuko, who shrugged, and followed her up, Mako on my back. "How's it shaking, Gamagoori?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at his traditionally stiff posture and facial expression, which soon reformed into righteous anger at our state of dress.

"I'll have you know that it is 'shaking' quite well, Mr. Isa. Now, why are you wearing such an absurd form of dress?! You too, Matoi!" I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose as Mako went on the usual epic rant on how we'd have our uniforms soon enough, that they were being washed and ironed, and something about making the large man wear pajamas to bed to avoid catching cold.

"A-Alright, Mankanshoku, I'll keep that in mind," Gamagoori stroked his chin thoughtfully before shaking himself out of the stupor he was in to address the rest of the cowering students below us. "Welcome to No-Late Day, students of Honnouji Academy. One day out of the year, if a student fails to arrive at their homeroom before 8:30 AM, they are summarily expelled from the Academy!"

"This year, the Disciplinary Committee has made sure to increase the difficulty of the Gauntlet to accommodate the two Kamui users as well as challenge the rest of your strength! Good luck, and may you reach the school on time!" I groaned as a flurry of mechanical activity signaled the arrival of the most gruesome obstacle course I had ever seen. It went in loops and everything.

"I certainly didn't see that coming!" Mako exclaimed, and I pounded my head against the proverbial keyboard at the blatant use of the chapter name, cursing the author of my existence. During this time, Gamagoori monologued a bit more, and Ryuko argued with him some more, and then we were set upon the deadly course as the Chair seemed to fly away from us on some other mechanical contraption.

"Alright then, Mako, Ryuko," I smirked, cockiness flooding my frame. "Ready to go all Captain Britain on this bullshit?" the two looked at each other in confusion as I cracked my knuckles and we proceeded through the first obstacle.

"Who the hell is Captain Britain?!" Ryuko asked me, voice ripe with her usual angry determination. I laughed arrogantly.

"Only my favorite superhero ever! He gets more and more powerful as his arrogance grows! He's a total jerk, but he has to be in order to be awesome!" My compatriots didn't find this nearly as funny, but I still laughed at the memories of the few comic books I had come across in my travels. **(A/N: Promise this is the only one of these in-story A/Ns. Captain Britain is actually in the Marvel universe, and he's a hilarious character. Look him up.)**

"Oh. Alright. That makes total sense. Remind me why I'm dating you again?" It appears that my endless sarcasm has rubbed off on Ryuko. Emphasis on the endless, because not really. She is rather good at the art, though. Not that this has any bearing on the current situation.

"Because I'm such a handsome son of a bitch, clearly. Although, I don't really know my parents. Whatever, let's just go. We're burning the morning away here!" The bitterness in my tone was overlooked by my friends, though Ryuko slugged my shoulder in what I supposed was meant as a show of comfort, but instead hurt like hell. My girlfriend had quite the arm.

In due time we had passed the first objective and found ourselves at a checkpoint. "1 out of 999…" I read on the side next to the peon guards. "Really? In four measly hours? Sounds like a challenge to me." I shrugged, throwing an arm over the shoulders of Ryuko and Mako. "Ready to go, ladies? We seem to have a long road ahead of us. Oh, and Gamagoori, don't bother monologuing, it'd only waste more of our time."

The Disciplinary Chair tried to protest, but we had already progressed past him to a set of stairs with no supports that led to the next challenge. However, before we could get much further, a girl with her arm wrapped in a cast made a dramatic show of falling down in pain, and I frowned at the poor acting. It was clear to me this girl wasn't injured at all, and I had a sneaking suspicion this was just another trap, though I supposed that I would be overruled by Ryuko and Mako.

I was right. After an admittedly good suck-up-fest, the girl, now identified as Maiko Ōgure, charmed her way into my companions' hearts while I slammed my head against the nearest hard surface in the background. Soon enough, though, we were well on our way through the course, with a few hiccups in between.

Numerous times, I had noticed that the Mankanshokus were attempting to bring us our uniforms, but every time they got close, they would crash from sudden nosebleed syndrome when Maiko 'accidentally' exposed my girlfriend's underwear. Every time it happened, I found myself quite annoyed, but consoled myself that the people around me saw much more of her when she was transformed. Then again, this was her underwear, and I somehow felt it was different.

After a bit more time had passed, we had only reached the bottom of the one-star living space. Seeing that we had so much more ground left, with so little time, the four of us had the bright idea of hijacking a bus full of one-stars to get the rest of the way up. Unfortunately, what we didn't account for was the gun-laden residents sent to stop us. _Really?! _I thought to myself as the bus we were in was peppered with bullets. _Guns?! Do we ever get a break?!_

Suddenly, Maiko hit a button on the bus's console that caused a massive minigun to spiral out of the floor, one which Mako was currently holding on to for dear life. Unsurprisingly, the girl pulled the trigger, spinning wildly and decimating the enemy forces around us. After a pretty large bump, however, the gun was forcibly brought down – the catch: Mako was still holding the trigger. I sighed as the assault now came from inside the old vehicle, cursing this stupid school once again.

While in the process of cursing Mikisugi, since I had run out of other things to complain about, I heard a damning call of "RPGs!" from one of the girls. And so, we found ourselves in the air, hurtling at quite a high speed toward the school itself. Once we had landed, I looked around before exiting the bus. Apparently we had lost the roof at some point and I hadn't noticed in my swear-fest.

Turning about towards the school entrance, I saw the last remaining member of the Mankanshoku family, the dog – of course it had to be the bloody dog – running at us with our Kamuis in its mouth. I met it midway and instantly pulled on Kurai, marveling at how comfortable he was after being stuck without him for so long. When I turned back to Ryuko, Mako, and Maiko, though, Maiko had stolen Senketsu from my girlfriend while Guts was bumbling about and had revealed that she was the Head of the Trap Development for the Disciplinary Committee.

"Of bloody course she is," I grumbled as she activated her last trap card, causing a massive slab of stone to stand on an impossible track and start speeding down to the bottom of the school. Of course, since I had run out of the way long ago, all I could do was watch as the three sped by me, Maiko having switched into Senketsu and transforming. I groaned, slamming my head into the wall repeatedly before glancing at the sun and blanching.

I could only hope that Ryuko would find her way to class somehow, seeing as I didn't really have a way to reach her. At least, that's what Kurai told me in his usual annoyingly logical tone. Though I was still wracked with worry for my significant other and her best friend, I tried to shrug it off the best I could and made my way to my seat in homeroom.

With five minutes left, a sudden sense of foreboding creeped its way into my mind, but I brushed it off, knowing that any moment Ryuko and Mako would burst through the door. With two minutes left, the feeling had grown ever stronger, and I glanced towards the window. The sight that greeted me had me at the front of the room and pressed up against the door faster than light. Mikisugi looked at me curiously, but I led his eyes out to the outside world.

My teacher – as dodgy as he was – understood my urgency and soon had joined me at the door. The rest of the students, still too exhausted from the morning's festivities, didn't bother to look, and I could only hope there were no fatalities if what I thought was going to happen actually happened. "So, teach," I laughed nervously. "Since I've got you here, wanna tell me how I can get to you out of class? I have some questions you might be able to answer, since I'm pretty sure you were connected to Mr. Matoi."

"W-What?! How did you – !" Whatever response that Mikisugi was about to give me, it was cut off when the wall facing outside imploded with the impact of a cable car, a cable car that Ryuko and Mako climbed out of, the former looking pretty exhausted while the latter seemed pretty exuberant from the ride. _Well, at least I nailed our dear teacher with my suspicions._

Seeing that Ryuko was about to fall over, I moved to her side with quite the speed, supporting her with my arm until she could collapse into her seat. "30 seconds left, girl. Cutting it close, aren't you?" I asked, a wry grin on my face. Too tired to reply to me, Ryuko simply flipped me off, and I laughed hysterically. This was going to be a long day for her.

(((…***…***…***…)))

After school, Mikisugi had predictably disappeared again, though he at least told me that Ryuko knew where to find him. Throwing my hands in the air, and after waking up my girlfriend, I told her I needed to see the Teach at his place, wherever that was. Since Ryuko had apparently slept through the day, she was a lot less lethargic when the final bell sounded, and agreed to lead me to the man's apartment.

Needless to say, it didn't take long to get to our destination, a seedy part of the slums – then again, in this town every part of the slums was shady. A decrepit apartment building overlooked a good portion of the entryways to Honnouji, and I rightly figured Mikisugi was in there somewhere. "You sure you want to go in alone?" Ryuko asked me after pointing out the window into our teacher's room.

"Yeah," I sighed wearily. "I'd love to bring you, but this feels like something I have to do on my own." My mind flooded with the memories I had of a younger Ryuko. Distracted, I almost didn't notice her turn to leave, but I stopped her. "Look, I'll see you at home in a couple hours, alright?" I said, kissing her full on the lips for a second before entering the building, looking back just once. The look of surprise on her face as she held a finger to her lips caused me to blush slightly when I realized what I had done.

"So, Kurai, ready to finally get some answers?"

"Of course I am, Rou. Of course I am." My Kamui seemed just as distracted as I was, and I played with the button on the jacket of the suit idly, still lost in thought as I made my way to the door corresponding to the window from outside. When I reached it, I didn't bother knocking, choosing to just head straight in.

"Who is it?" I heard the voice come from around a massive pile of papers and Mikisugi ducked his head around the corner to see me. "Oh, it's you. Come in, come in." Shrugging, I followed the narrow path between stacks of dead tree to find a somewhat-open space with a ratty couch and a crotchety old desk. Perched on one end of the couch was my homeroom teacher.

"Alright then, Mr. Isa, so what would you like to ask? Now that you've sniffed out my identity, anyway." Mikisugi made a flourish of pushing his trademark glasses off his head, revealing a whole different person. I raised an eyebrow as he began unbuttoning his shirt.

"Is that really necessary?" I asked sarcastically as his pants also dropped to the floor, leaving him pretty much starkers. "Looking like that in front of your student makes me wonder if you're a pedophile or just a nudist…" His eyes widened in a weird combination of resentment and shock.

"How did you know I was a part of Nudist Beach?!" he demanded, and I lamented that there was nothing hard around to bang my head against, sitting on a couch as I was.

"I didn't, but I've heard some rumors of a rebel organization against clothing in general. Having known how fucked up this town is, I wouldn't be surprised at how plain a name like 'Nudist Beach' is for a revolutionary army. That isn't what I'm here about, though."

"What are you here about, then?" the nude man asked me, suddenly serious even after finding out I had 'sniffed out his identity.'

I took a deep breath to pull my thoughts into order before responding. "Do you know who I am?" my voice trembled a bit toward the end. Mikisugi sighed and made to respond, but I interrupted him. "I understand you may not be able to tell me everything, being an important figure in your organization and everything, but I don't understand this." Taking off my glove and showing him the scar, I continued. "When Ryuko traced this with her finger, I remembered my full name. I also have memories of the girl from a younger age, but I don't know why, and she doesn't remember ever having met me!"

"Speaking of that, why is it that the two of us get along as well as we do? Kurai and Sen seemed to know it was going to happen, but within twelve hours of meeting each other in living memory, we were a couple! That doesn't happen to normal people, let alone girls with dark pasts and guys who can't remember a thing of his life before waking up. It's so confusing, and I don't want it to end, but I have a bad feeling that this is all some sick experiment! Can you give me any of those answers?!" I was yelling at the end. After I finished, I let my head sink into my hands wearily.

"Who am I, Aikurō? _What _am I?" My voice was now low, and I knew that this outburst was the sole reason I hadn't brought Ryuko with me. She would start to worry, and then things would get worse. Then again, weren't they already worse?

Mikisugi sighed, and got up from his side of the couch, sitting across from me on the desk instead. "You were right when you said I wouldn't be able to tell you everything, Rou," he started. "I don't even know everything. Only Isshin knows that, and he's dead. But I can tell you some, and if you can prove you're trustworthy of the rest of the information I can give that to you as well." I looked up, hope in my eyes at the very thought of learning more about myself.

"Alright, that's that. Here's what I know. Kuraiketsu wasn't always yours. He was created in secret by Isshin Matoi, specifically for someone else, but then something forced his hand and he had to give it to you," I nodded, having expected this much. "Pay attention, this is where it gets messy. You were created by Revocs 18 years ago. I couldn't tell you how or why, but you ended up with Isshin in his lab."

"W-What?" I asked, incredulous at the story unfolding in front of me. Mikisugi ignored me.

"After a few years, Isshin made you a room in the attic of the house from which you could watch Ryuko growing up. Again, I couldn't tell you the first thing about how or why he managed to do this. I'm only going off what he told me himself, knowing I would have to tell you. Ryuko doesn't remember you because to her, you never existed, even though you lived above her nearly your entire life."

"There's more. From what I've been able to gather, you aren't entirely human, which is why you can perform the unprecedented act of communicating with a Kamui. I don't know how else your DNA has been altered, but it seems you may be able to heal from deadly wounds at an alarming rate."

Silence filled the room when the revelations stopped. My mind was a mess, and I was pretty much catatonic as I tried to process what I had learned, though I failed quite spectacularly. "I – I've got to go," I said finally, ignoring my teacher's cries for me to wait – and Kurai's for that matter – as I stumbled out of the apartment building towards the house I now called home.

It took an eternity to reach the clinic, and I fell through the doorframe, eyes wide and unseeing as the numbers added up again and again, though I tried desperately to ignore it, to wish it weren't true. Mindless, I heard Kurai shouting for Ryuko and Sen as if from a great distance, and I curled into a ball on the floor, tears streaming down my face as I denied everything.

_Why did I have to ask? _I thought desperately. _Why did I want to know? Now that I do – how can I face anyone, knowing I'm not even human?!_ I wasn't able to shake off the questions this time, and I didn't feel it as I was lifted into someone's arms and taken to my bed. I couldn't sleep, though, not until I felt something warm press into my back. Relaxing slowly, my eyes closed on their own and I fell into a troubled slumber filled with more answers than questions, and what they could possibly mean.

(((…***…***…***…)))

When I woke up in the morning, I waited a bit to get a bearing on my surroundings. I was in my bed, and there was a body cuddling me from behind. I felt for the hands that were around my waist to find that they were Ryuko's. Once I had identified my surprise guest, I relaxed the tense form I had developed and tried to get a handle on what had been revealed to me the previous evening now I was lucid.

The one thought running through my head after I finished – what should I tell Ryuko? Rather, how much should she know? I felt inclined to reveal all of it, but then a ghostly Mikisugi floated through my mind and warned me against it. I asked why, and his form morphed into my own, this one with a cruel smirk. It told me that if I told her, she would forsake me, and I grew very fearful, tensing enough that the girl in question woke up.

Shushing me, Ryuko misinterpreted my tension for wariness, and she reassured me it was her. Inside, I violently pushed away the apparition of myself, my logic finally kicking in as I realized it would only be worse later if I didn't tell her now. Relaxing in my girlfriend's arms, I turned my body around to look her in the eyes. "I have a lot to tell you," I murmured.

"Is it about last night? I was pretty worried, you know, thought you had been attacked or something when Kurai yelled and you didn't respond to anything I did." My lack of response stopped her humor in its tracks.

"Y-Yes. It does. C-Could you promise me something first?" I asked, a deep anxiety settling into my bones as I tightened my own hold on her.

"Anything," she whispered, and I sighed to try to relieve some of the pressure.

"C-Could you promise not to leave me after I tell you? I'm so afraid that you'll hear what I have to say and I couldn't bear it if you left. I just – please promise to stay. Mako can tell them we got sick or something." I was babbling, and Ryuko's gaze hardened before softening slightly to let me know she wasn't angry with me.

"She already has, Rou. It's well into lunchtime by now, I'll have you know. I promise, though I don't know why you would ever think I would leave you…" I drew in a shaky breath and hugged her, flipping our bodies so she lay on my chest. I couldn't bring myself to look her in the eyes as I told her my story.

After I was finished, I closed my eyes and waited for the warmth to leave me. When it did, I whimpered, but it didn't return, and I shut my eyes tighter as tears threatened to leak out. "Please come back," I squeaked out pathetically, broken by what I assumed was rejection. However, just as I started hyperventilating, Ryuko returned and hugged me tighter than I thought possible.

"You're a fool if you thought I was going to be gone more than a moment. I had to go take care of a couple things, that's all." It took what felt like an hour to recover from my panic attack, and my breathing eventually slowed as I opened my mouth to speak again. Unfortunately – fortunately? – Ryuko's mouth covered mine before I could respond, instantly bringing her usual passion to the table.

When we separated, I couldn't really remember why I was worried. All that remained was my girlfriend's unique taste on my lips and a buzzing in my mind had since associated with adrenaline borne of pleasure. Before I could fully regain my mental faculties, the mouth returned for another, shorter bout before I found myself able to open my eyes again to the beautiful sight of a smirking Ryuko, cheeks red from her actions.

"Why is it," I began to ask, "That every time we do this, I end up on the bottom and you end up both straddling me and initiating it?" My usual sarcasm was back, and I smiled faintly.

"It must be because you're a handsome son of a bitch," Ryuko responded, just as sarcastically, kissing me again. I grinned and let out a little laugh.

"I'll be right back," she said, standing again and leaving the room. Now I had something new to worry about. What the hell was that for? We had known each other a week – well, more than that if Mikisugi was to be believed – and in that week we had met, become friends, fought together a lot, fought with other people a lot, started dating, and slept in each other's arms – the last one more than once.

"What the hell?" I asked the empty air, shocked when a pair of voices actually responded to me.

"Dammit Rou, how come you get so lucky?!" Kurai complained, while Sen had the same response I did, except a bit more pronounced. "WHAT THE FUCK?!"

I laughed harder at the reactions. It felt like nothing could ruin my mood as it was after all that shit. What a rollercoaster of emotion. I certainly didn't see that coming!


	4. Just Pull The Fucking Trigger Already

_Chapter 3: Just Pull The Fucking Trigger Already_

**A/N: So this relationship is going to look super rushed for a while, but there's a ****_very _****good reason for that. It will be mostly explained by the late middle of the story, and fully explained by the epilogue. I have all the plans in the world, but it's killing me because I can't talk about any of it… Just stick with it, and I'll drop the first ****_big-ass_**** bombshell in the next chapter when I cover Sanageyama's battle with Ryuko. Sound good? Good.**

Another couple of weeks passed before anything interesting happened, leaving Ryuko and I thankful for small favors. We were still fighting off the various club presidents, and things were almost boring after the twelfth or thirteenth straight day of absurd fighting. As for my relationship with the volatile girl, it had grown quite a bit stronger, and there were only a few secrets I kept from her – mainly about my personal feelings on some matters, I had no desire to get beaten up.

It was a day like any other when both the weirdest and most serious battle to date occurred. Ryuko, Mako, and I were eating our lunches out on some rusted chains that were still used for whatever reason when the roof of the building behind us exploded in a flurry of dust. Turning around, I made to look up at the darned thing to find quite the battle taking place, but shrugged it off as something inconsequential before brushing the crumbs off Kurai and standing.

"Ready to leave?" I asked. "It seems Mako's been kidnapped again while we weren't looking, and by the trail of fake organs on the ground it'll have been the biology club. You want to take this one?" At this point, we had been taking turns decimating our enemies. Small fry like a two-star wasn't going to bother us too much, even though the two-star was often surrounded by one-stars.

"Yeah, I probably should. Wait for me by the entrance?" I nodded and waved her off with a kiss on the cheek. "I'll be sure to beat your record, too. Hmph, I still can't believe that you wiped the floor with the Cleaning Club in seven seconds."

Laughing at my girlfriend's playful indignation, I flipped her a three-fingered wave and strode away towards the entrance in question, not bothering to look back. I knew she was long gone by the time I put down my hand. "I have a bad feeling about this, Rou. It feels like something's going to happen, something that neither of us like."

"Kurai, you have a bad feeling about a lot, but you're probably right in this case. It's been too quiet recently, feels like there should be more action in this story. I'll keep an eye out, and if Ryuko flies through any walls then I'll let you take over."

"Sounds good to me, Rou. And you may want to look across to that wall, your girl seems to have just come hurtling through it in a spray of needles." Startled, I spun on my foot just in time to see a bleeding Ryuko come flying through the side of a building, landing midway between me and the destroyed wall. I growled as a figure stepped through behind her, generating quite the cloud of dust.

"Alright then. Looks like we have a _real _fight on our hands this time. Kurai, I'll hold off on transforming for now, I want to hold all my cards close to my chest on this one." Unsheathing my swords and letting their auras flare, I stalked up to Ryuko. She appeared to be pinned to the ground with sewing needles, and I grimaced when I tried to pull her up. This wasn't going to happen easily.

"Step back from the Kamui user, kid," a deep voice sounded across the field, and I looked up to find a heavily muscled man in a combat vest, pants, and boots striding towards me, dual-wielding guns that looked similar to sewing machines. This one was going to pay for what he had done, and I fully activated my blades, crossing them and admiring the way the auras swirled about each other.

"Not a chance of that, man," I responded, spitting to the right of us, "There's no way I'll be letting you get away with attacking my girlfriend like that." Despite my bravado, I had the distinct feeling I wouldn't be able to stop the man without triggering Kurai. Sneering, I reluctantly pulled the pin from my glove.

As always, the transformation was accompanied by a flurry of motion about my body as Kurai fed off my blood, contorting and releasing some of the power he gained to twist about me. Once I finished, I held back the usual yell announcing what had happened and chanced a glance back to Ryuko, who was staring at me with wide eyes, shaking her head.

I let my sneer soften and winked at her before turning around to face the mysterious figure. "I suppose you know what my wearing this means, and from your attire I'm going to hazard a guess you're from the organization in Osaka, right?" The man's expression turned into that of disbelief, and I grinned. "I know I might not be able to beat you here, especially with Ryuko as she is, but know this, buddy: If you insist on coming after us, you probably won't survive the fight."

"Pretty words, kid," The man laughed darkly, "But let me tell you two things: One, I hate being interrupted when I'm working. Two, I'm already coming after you, Kamui user." With that, he made to aim at me with his guns, and I brought my swords to bear, the light of their auras casting shadows on my body that shouldn't be there.

"Good luck. My swords are singing – singing for your blood – and they won't stop until you've been drained. Normally I'd restrain them, stuff the sound into my body, but you've threatened the only constant in this life of mine. Well, really both the constants in my life, though I only hope for the second one to stay." I hoped Ryuko heard me and understood what I was trying to stay, and I readied myself, opening my mind slightly to the sounds coming from the crossed blades.

"Tsumugu, stop this at once!" Mikisugi's voice broke through the cloud before things got bloody, and I frowned in disappointment. Looking back, I saw that he had subdued Ryuko with a jab to one of her pressure points – from her stiff posture, I figured she wouldn't be aware of anything until it was jabbed again.

When the teacher broke into the line of sight between the man and me, I saw that he wasn't too happy. "We need to talk. Now. Meet me at the usual place in fifteen minutes, I'm going to have to clean up your damned mess." Ah. He was using the cover of the cloud to obscure how he knew the man. Then again, the only one other than myself with the mental faculties to understand was Sen, and he was busy trying to get Ryuko to wake up.

"Mikisugi!" I stopped him before he could leave, glaring lightly at him. "I hope you understand that if that… _man… _cannot stop himself from assaulting Ryuko, then I will be forced to act." Stiffly, my teacher nodded once and turned to walk away, once more taking up a relaxed, almost lazy stance after the dust had at last settled.

"Hey! You forgot to fix my girlfriend! Hey! Mikisugi, you aren't going to make _me _try and find the spot to jab, are you?!" I called after him, having realized that Ryuko was still on the ground, unmoving. Unfortunately for me, he was already long gone, leaving me with the loathsome task of jabbing random spots until she woke up. I sighed; this was going to take _quite _a while.

(((…***…***…***…)))

"Did you really have to spend so _long _waking me up?! It shouldn't have taken you any time at all, but no, you just _have _to go and prod me for half an hour. And then – AND THEN – we just had to go home, just like _that?! _I've had to piss since this morning, and then all that bullshit went down, and I _still _have to piss!" I sighed. Ryuko had been yelling at me for the past hour about my actions earlier in the afternoon.

"Look, you're right, maybe I should've been a bit faster, and yes, I was afraid that you would wake up and break my nose for being close to you, and that's stupid, I know, but it doesn't change the past. And we've been here for an hour, if you had to piss why didn't you go when we got back?!" I _really _couldn't see her logic, though I suppose that was a by-product of being male.

"I wanted to yell at you, alright?! That guy was powerful, and I don't even think _you _could beat him, Rou! And now he knows you have a Kamui, so he'll be after you as well. Fuck, you really shouldn't have done that, but you're right. I need to piss, and you better not have moved when I get back, or there'll be hell to pay. Got it?" I nodded solemnly and crossed my arms, leaning back against the nearest wall leisurely.

After Ryuko left our shared living space, Mako snuck in and stood in front of me, peering up into my face with a cute little look of annoyance. "You made Ryuko angry and worried! She was scared for you and you just went and blew it with all your cockiness and stuff!" I sighed again, rubbing the back of my head wearily.

"Mako, I know, and I'm sorry about that, but if she thinks for one moment that I was just going to sit there and watch as she and Sen were killed, she's got another thing coming. I don't care how dangerous that asshole is, I sure as fuck wasn't going to let him take the one person that cares about me more than anyone away. I tried to get her out of there, I really did, but she wasn't going to budge with all those pins and needles in her. Fuck me… Mako, I think I might be falling in love with her! And I've known her scarcely a month! What the fuck…" I trailed off after my rant, and noticed two things almost at once.

First: Mako had a supreme look of satisfaction on her face. Second: Ryuko was in the doorway, where I hadn't noticed her, and the comical shape her mouth was making would have been amusing – and completely adorable – in any other circumstance. _Well… shit, _I thought, my mind completely blank except for my inner realization. _I'm so fucked._ So caught up in my panic, I hardly noticed Ryuko open her mouth to speak, opting instead for the safe route out the window and as far away from the house as I could run. I needed to calm down and think about things. I needed to go to the ocean.

An hour of mindless movement later, I found myself sitting in a culvert that overlooked the sea. Kurai was silent; he knew I needed to be alone for this. Once I calmed down sufficiently – well, as sufficiently as I was going to get – I thought about what I had said. _Am I really? I hardly know what love is. Hell, I didn't know I had even been in contact with any humans until less than a month ago! I'm so fucking confused, and I have no idea what I'm doing. Fuck me, and I ran away from her too. Now I'm really in trouble._

"Let's go out on a limb here and say I'm falling for the girl I just met, who I also knew from before… which is confusing in and of itself. I don't have any idea what this crazy feeling is, but that alone means I'm right, right? Ah fuck, this is so messed up. What am I supposed to do, Kurai, I probably just fucked everything right up before it started. I don't even like pears!"

"Well," my Kamui replied, and I could tell he seemed kind of nervous. "You could always ask her. She's standing right behind you, after all… and she doesn't look angry at you." Shocked and afraid, I stood and made to spin around, but found myself enveloped in arms that didn't look like they were going to be moving anytime soon. For a moment I kept trying to escape, only to learn every time I so much as twitched away the arms would grow tighter.

An eternity passed in silence before either of us spoke, and when we did it was both of us. "I'm sorry." I squeezed her hand to let her know I would be going first. "Sorry for scaring you, but I just couldn't do nothing. I was angry and scared too that someone could smack you down like that, and I wanted him gone so badly, so I almost got myself in a worse situation. So sorry. And about what I said…"

"You're an asshole," Ryuko interrupted me, and I winced as her arms drew yet tighter around me. Even so, I could almost feel the blush on her face. "But I think I might be falling for you too. And sorry for yelling at you. I didn't realize." My eyes widened as comically as her mouth had earlier, and without further debate I spun in her arms – somehow, and I still don't know how with how tight they were around me – facing her at once.

"Yeah, I'm an asshole and a bastard and whatever else. But what was that you said about cliffs and splattering sounds?" My analogy mad me chuckle slightly, though the girl holding me looked at me like I was crazy before she shook it off.

"I said I think I'm falling for you too, Isa. Now shut your whore mouth and kiss me already."

I grinned. "But Ryuko, yours is the only mouth my own has touched. How, then, can it be a whore? Especially since you're not paying it anything." Ryuko growled and moved a hand up to the back of my head, forcing me into it as she usually had to. Not that I was complaining about it; she _was _pretty persuasive after all. She had a sly tongue.

"So," I drawled after we separated. "If that's what you're going to pay me, you'd better have more coming, because I might just consider being your _exclusive _whore mouth." Her grin was all I needed to respond in kind, and we turned back into the city to head home.

"Hmph. Only if you initiate it for once," she smirked at me, obviously thinking it was clever of her, but I only leaned close to her as we walked.

"Normally I'd love to, but what if I _like _it when you dominate things like that?" I laughed as her eyes snapped forward and a blush grew on her cheeks again. No matter how much she looked like a badass to other people, she was still seventeen, and I still knew how to make her react like that.

"Well do you?" she said after a few more minutes, causing me to respond identically to her despite myself. She sounded so curious I couldn't help it.

I sniffed. "Of course I do, and I wouldn't have it any other way. It feels way too good for me to just give that up on your whim like that, though I suppose I can attack you once to see if that's any better." If I was good at anything when I was embarrassed, it was rambling and feeling self-conscious at the same time.

"No, that's alright. If you tried it, I think I might punch you." I almost tripped as we walked at how nonchalantly she said that. This time, though, it was Ryuko's turn to sigh. "What's happening between the two of us, Rou? Why is it that we feel this way after knowing each other for so short a time? It feels so real, but I'm afraid of what it could mean…" Glancing at my girlfriend saw her with a pensive look.

Smiling softly, I just pulled her close. "Well, I for one am done worrying about the past and future. We'll figure it out, and we'll deal with that when it comes for us to do so. For now, let's focus on the present, alright? We're probably going to have to fight that guy again tomorrow, so we need to be good. Are we good?" Ryuko stared at me incredulously.

"Do you _really _need a reminder that we're good? After the five minutes we just spent making sure we were 'good?'" I laughed and shook my head slightly.

"Not really, I just wanted an excuse to kiss you," I replied cheekily, and Ryuko rolled her eyes before tackling me to the ground with a wide grin.

(((…***…***…***…)))

_Fuck, fuck, fuck, where is she, where is she, where is she? _I thought frantically as I dug through the rubble that surrounded me. _I need to find her. I _need _to find her. Fuck, this is really bad._ Unfortunately for my continued mental health, I had bigger problems as a furious Nonon Jakuzure stalked towards me.

"Where's your girlfriend and that hunk of meat, Isa?" she screeched at me, and I frowned harder than I already was.

"Who do you think I'm looking for, woman?! Fuck, I'm so worried, and right after all that shit about love last night too. I knew it was a bad idea, I just couldn't keep my damned mouth shut until I was sure of it, and now I've jinxed us and now she's gone and I don't know where she is and –" I was cut off by a slap to the face.

"If she's still alive, Isa, she sure as hell isn't going to be in here with us. I don't know about half of what you were just saying, but you might want to check off school grounds. Even I can tell you'll tear this place apart if you keep looking for her, and Lady Satsuki doesn't want to deal with any more construction than she has to." Shocked with the girl's helpfulness, I pulled her into a deep hug and let my thanks be known before sprinting out of the school. Now that I had been pulled to my senses, I had a pretty good idea where she had gone.

It had all started that morning. Ryuko had found the man I knew was called Tsumugu leaning against the wall just inside the school, smoking a cigarette idly. As I was beside her, I immediately aligned myself next to her for support, but was instantly taken down by a trap the foul man had lain before my arrival.

Unconscious, I was in the rubble of what used to be the ground for at least a half hour, and in that time the two fighters had destroyed half the school. Even worse, I learned from Mako that most of the damage had been caused by a hurtling Ryuko, and that she had almost lost Sen to the guy. Once I had woken up, I made to move towards the latest cloud of dust only to find a massive pile of rocks and destroyed wall.

_No, _I had thought, denying what was then obvious to me. I just couldn't believe that Ryuko had been defeated so soundly, just like that. I had begun to sift through the mess, lifting rocks bigger than me like it was nothing, blinded by a panicked rage. Every time I saw a hand sticking out of the ground, I tried to reveal it, and every time it was only a one-star student that got caught in the crossfire. It was here that Nonon found me.

"She had better fucking be at Mikisugi's," I growled, drawn out of my thoughts by the sight of the ratty apartment building in the distance. "If she isn't, I'm going to rip the fucker in half, damn the consequences." Storming up the stairs once I reached the slum, I didn't bother knocking on his door, instead slamming my body straight through it.

Inside, I found Tsumugu and Mikisugi quietly discussing something or other, and I sneered in rage at the nervous look on their faces at the sight of me. Ignoring the teacher, I grasped the other man by the throat and shoved him against the wall. "Where is she?!" I roared, spittle flying into his face. "I swear on my fucking life, on all five fucking months of clear memory I have, that if you've touched her or Sen then you'll be dead before the sun goes down tonight. Do you hear me? Dead!"

There was a whooshing in my ears and I twitched before falling to the floor, putting my head in my hands. Sensing how powerful the fire had become, it seemed Kurai had forcibly stopped me in my tracks to stop me from getting too out of control. "What the fuck?" I asked him. "How the hell did you learn to do that?!"

"I just remembered how to do so, Rou. And you might want to look behind you before you get too forward." Turning slowly, my eyes widened at the sight of a sleeping Ryuko on the couch. I didn't know how I hadn't woken her up, but I couldn't bring myself to care as I crawled over to her, climbing up the couch to sit next to her face.

"Sorry I couldn't be there, Ryuko. I should have seen it coming, but I was caught in the trap anyway, and I almost lost you." I knew she couldn't hear me, but I leaned in next to her ear anyway. "You know, I was so scared, but you just look so peaceful. And you know what? I might've said some stuff last night about falling for you, but I think I already did. Ryuko Matoi, I think I fell in love with you. Fuck, this is crazy."

Much to my shock, a cheeky smile appeared on my girlfriend's face, and she cracked open her eyes at me. "You're an asshole, Rou. Go apologize to those fucks for scaring them so I can do it myself once I get up, and we'll talk about this later, where there aren't any perverted teachers." Smiling, I nodded and kissed her cheek once before standing and moving to the other occupants of the room.

"Tsumugu, you really need to understand that there's more to Ryuko and Sen, Kurai and me, than meets the eye. You can't hear their voices but we can, and there's nothing we can do about that. I really would dislike killing you, but if it must be done then it must be done, and I won't hesitate to do so with or without my Kamui."

"That's not what I'm here to say, though. That's part of it, but I _would _like to apologize for choking you out just now. I was blinded by my fury and fear, and I took it out on you. Coming over here, I just got angrier and angrier, and not even Kurai could stop me. So sorry for that." My eyes, while still filled with determination to carry out my earlier threat, held a softness that wasn't there before.

"I accept your apology and your threat with open arms, Isa. Whether we fight for or against each other the next time we meet, I'll treasure the battle that ensues." I supposed that was as good as I was going to get under the circumstances, and held out a hand to shake. As if wary of any violence I could wreak, Tsumugu reached towards me, and that was that. I did squeeze a bit harder than was strictly necessary, but he deserved it.

"Wait a minute. You, Mohawk Man, you know Mikisugi? Just who the hell are you guys?! And don't think you're off the hook either, Isa. How is it that all of you three are so chummy?" It seemed that Ryuko had finally connected the dots, though Tsumugu had taken our momentary lapse in focus to escape from what was sure to be an explosion of pure Matoi anger.

"W-Well, you see Ryuko, I'm not really 'chummy' so to speak with them, I just… ah, fuck it, you wouldn't believe me if I swore my undying loyalty to the cause. So, dear teacher, ready to get beaten to within an inch of your life with me?"

"An inch? No, for this we'll be delving to within a centimeter of your lives, you morons!" I winced. This wasn't going to be fun, and I slightly regretted not revealing this little fact to Ryuko the previous night. At least I was better off than Mikisugi; not only was my pain tolerance higher than his, I was closer to the frustrated girl than he was.

**A/N: Not my best work, and certainly not a very clean ending, but it was filler mostly. The big shit doesn't go down till next update.**


	5. I Think It's Time For a Change Of Pace

_Chapter 4: I Think It's Time for a Change of Pace_

_Why is it that every time we get a break from all the interesting stuff, something comes along and ruins our moods day after day after day? _I asked myself, unsurprisingly without a response from any corner. It had only been a few hours since Ryuko had reamed me a new asshole about keeping the association between Tsumugu and Mikisugi a secret, and already there was something big going on at school. Almost as soon as we had arrived, a smug-looking Uzu Sanageyama had challenged my girlfriend and me to a duel, though I was merely to be her second.

Never one to back down to a challenge like that, Ryuko accepted with her typical fervor and arrogance, responding in kind. The duel was to take place during the lunch hour – like everything else in the damn Academy of any import, and the lunch hour actually took up like three hours, but I had no way to change what they called it.

Anyway, while Ryuko was off avoiding me, seeing as she was still kind of pissed about the other day, I was left to wander until it was time for class. Predictably, I ran into someone, knocking them down and causing me to stumble and fall atop them. Quickly rolling off whoever I had inconvenienced, I held out a hand only to have it slapped away by an irate Non-Athletic Committee Chair.

"And here I was trying to be kind," I amusedly mused. "I don't suppose you'd be interested in some companionship? I seem to be rather lonely, and was thinking of skipping class today. I don't think my girlfriend would appreciate my presence behind her right now."

The midget of a girl harrumphed at my obvious underachiever attitude but gestured to her side regardless, having stood up during my outspoken thoughts. "I'll write you a pass, since I have to speak with you about a few things anyway." Curious, I raised an eyebrow, but Jakuzure didn't respond, opting instead to look straight ahead as we walked towards what I presumed was her 'personal office.'

Upon entering the room, I noticed it was pretty comfortable looking, more suited to a house's living room than an office, and chalked it up to the stereotypes surrounding each of the Elite Four's personalities. I also noticed that Inumuta, the head of the Intelligence Committee, was lounging in the only hard-backed chair in the room. Looking up when we entered, he adjusted his sunglasses when he saw me and went back to his tablet or whatever.

"Bringing our enemies into your personal space now, Nonon? I didn't think you would stoop so low as to seduce the man, though from the data I've collected it doesn't seem very likely he'll fall for your… charm." I liked this guy already, and silently lamented the fact we were on opposite sides. I got the feeling we'd get along well anyway, though.

"Hardly, Inumuta. I just wanted to speak with him on a few subjects, as you well know. Now leave, this is meant to be a private conversation." Wow, this girl was pissy today. Raising a thin eyebrow at the pair of us, he stood and made to leave while Jakuzure flopped onto a couch nearby, taking off that obnoxious hat of hers for once.

As he passed me, I reached out for his upper arm, stopping him. "I hope you realize I know you wiretapped the room, Chief. You might want to take those out before I do it for you, and if I do you won't be getting them back in one piece." Giving me an appraising look, the three-star sighed before pressing a key on his tablet and causing five or six cameras and microphones to be drawn to his outstretched hand.

"Nice job catching that, Isa. I'll have to do better next time, and catalogue your powers of observations." I tapped the side of my nose and winked at him, letting him leave the room and sitting in a recliner across from the only other occupant of the room. A short staring contest ensued before one of us spoke.

"So what did you want to talk about? I'm guessing part of it is the hug; sorry about that, I was caught up in the moment and didn't mean to unsettle you. Besides, since we were technically friends at that point, I hardly thought it would matter if I took some liberties with my actions. I do love my hugs." I was rambling again, but this time it was intentional.

"That was part of it, I admit," Jakuzure squeaked slightly. "And I don't see how we could really be considered friends, given any circumstance, but I would like to ask your opinion of a few things and get your side of a few stories."

"Ah. Understandable. And as far as friends go, since you weren't trying to kill us and the other guy was, you were the enemy of an enemy, which makes you my friend through the convoluted reasoning that is my own. That applies in any situation, by the way. For example, now, we're having a civil discussion, which makes you a cautious acquaintance. I don't have nearly the same number of reservations against your lot anyway."

"I suppose that makes a modicum of sense. For this conversation only, call me Nonon, just to make things easier for us in the short run. And that's my first question. You don't seem to be very… volatile when it comes to Lady Satsuki and the Elite Four. Why is that?" I sighed and scratched my chin, deciding how much to tell her.

"Tough question, Nonon," I tried out the name, continuing on with my answer after a moment's hesitation. "As for my stance on the matter, it goes like this: You have an origin story, yes? You have parents, a childhood, memories of friends, presumably with Miss Kiryuin included with these based on your relative informality with her, all of that, yes? Don't bother answering me, I know you do."

"See, Nonon, I'm a bit bitter about all that. I remember very little of my past before I woke up five months ago in the basement of some old guy's house. What I do know, I found out from Ryuko and another man, and it isn't anything good. I don't have parents, see, because I was created, not born. It fucking sucks to know you never had a father or a mother, you understand."

"As far as my seeming indifference to Miss Kiryuin and you four, it's all a matter of perspective. I know there's more to the story than you're letting on. I also found out from Ryuko that Satsuki told her she would tell her who killed her dad when she beat all of you, so that's one of the biggest reason's I'm fighting you to begin with. If it weren't for Ryuko, I'd be on your side with all this shit, and I might even try and make myself part of the Inner Circle."

"My point is that while Ryuko is infuriated because Miss Kiryuin knows the identity of her father's killer but won't share it in favor of playing this game, I don't have any reason to believe any of you know who – or rather, what – I am. Therefore, I'm perfectly content to have these conversations with you guys, since for all intents and purposes you're good people, just stuck in this stupid fucking class system."

During the process of my lengthy response to Nonon, I had stood and started pacing, gesturing with my arms here and there when I reached somewhere particularly annoying. Once I had finished, I took a deep breath, sitting down again and staring at her gobsmacked and attentive expression with a smirk.

"That… was far more information than I would have expected. So I take it you're neutral except for Ryuko?" I nodded, and she asked her next question. "Why her? If you don't mind my asking, that is." The last part was said in a hurry, and I raised an eyebrow when the girl blushed.

"Why, Nonon, do you have a crush on me? Bah, don't worry, your 'secret' is safe with me, not that it matters. What does, however, matter is that I will not under any circumstances be parting ways with Ryuko, nor will she break up with me. Our pasts, presents, and futures seem to be intertwined, and neither of us can afford to ruin that. Now, if it weren't for her, perhaps I could find myself with you, but that is merely wishful thinking. Even if Ryuko were to perish, forbid the thought, I would be following her. I dread to think of what would happen to me otherwise."

I had watched as my conversation partner's face had cycled between embarrassment, frustration, disappointment, sadness, anger, confusion, and resignation over the course of my short answer. "If you want a hug, ask me whenever – well, providing Ryuko isn't watching – she wouldn't quite understand it. It'd be a small comfort, to be sure, but I did say I love my hugs, and I'm not picky about where they come from."

"Shut up!" I couldn't bring myself to be too surprised by the vitriol in the girl's tone and expression. "Just get over here and do it already then!" I tried not to laugh, I really did, but a small chuckle slipped out of the grin I had formed as I stood and approached the Elite Four member, marveling at how meek she appeared when she was vulnerable.

When the girl made no move to get up, I rolled my eyes and grabbed her outstretched hand, pulling her towards and into my arms with a strong tug. She made an 'Oof!' sound when she impacted my chest, and Kurai complained a bit at the weight. Ignoring the whining of my Kamui, I grinned at how awkward the girl was making this for herself as we stood there. She didn't even try to return the hug she asked for, and I pointed this out, causing her to stomp on my foot in response; however, she still tentatively put her arms around me.

After a minute of standing like that, I let her go and sat down in my chair again, crossing on leg over the other, waiting for her to also resume her position on the sofa before continuing. "Now, Nonon, I suspect that while I summarily disabled Inumuta's wiretaps around this office, he has also placed additionally microphones and cameras on either or both of our persons. As a result, I'd like to take this time to tell the slimy bastard to stop peeping and come in here already, assuming that you ever left the vicinity to begin with."

My conversation companion's eyes narrowed when a somewhat sheepish-looking Intelligence Chair shuffled into the room, but I stalled her vehemence with a wave of my hand. "I trust the 'data' you collected on my interactions with my 'enemies' was sufficient for your personal curiosities, Inumuta? It would be simply _horrid _if you hadn't picked up on everything I said. I _hate _repeating myself, after all." Though not as ruffled as Nonon, I was still reasonably annoyed at the man's antics.

"As a matter of fact, yes, Mr. Isa, I have. I find myself commending you for your skills of observation and deduction – not many would have been able to detect my devices. I remain curious in my own right, however – why on earth would you feel the need to call me in, knowing you could hold this over me at a later date? Are you attempting to sow seeds of discontent and mistrust among the Elite Four?"

Inumuta was scarily intelligent, though his suspicions were somewhat misplaced. Chuckling softly, I held out a hand in greeting. "My desires are hardly so convoluted and dark, my friend. Within these four walls, my dear Nonon and I have dropped the pretenses of our factions and were having quite the amicable discussion, as you well know. Perhaps you may be able to assist me with an aspect of said discussion I have yet to bring up?"

When the elite's glasses flashed interestedly, I knew I had him. I had every intention of attempting to see if the tracing of the rune on my hand by these two very important players in the game could yield any more approaching memories for me, and the arrival of the second member sped up the process remarkably fast, as it saved me the time of trying to find another situation such as the one I was currently in.

"And what, pray tell, is this, Mr. Isa? Something from which I can extrapolate from and add to my surprisingly scarce collection of data on your life, perhaps?" I laughed and nodded, the pinch of sarcasm tinging his tone resonating with me. It really was a shame we had to be enemies outside of the office.

"The reason you have so little information on my past is likely the same as the reason I remember so very little, as you no doubt heard me telling Ms. Jakuzure. Sorry for leaving you out of the conversation, by the way, Nonon, but this is very important to me and I must treat this one with the respect I hold for him." Pulling off my glove, I held my scar up to the light before continuing.

"Tell me, Inumuta, Nonon, what do you know of the Ancient Norse rune set known as Elder Futhark?" Unsurprisingly, my up-to-now pleasant companion shook her head in an expression that told me she quite obviously knew nothing. At the same time, Inumuta nodded his head thoughtfully. "Good, good. So then, does this scar look familiar to you? Perhaps a certain character in the series?"

Turning my hand around to face the two elites, I relished in the rapt fascination paid the laguz adorning my skin by the Intelligence Chair. "This is the rune for memory, is it not?" his scholarly interest caused me to smirk, and I nodded along. "Fascinating. It bears no resemblance to any form of laser-cutting or blade, yet the scar remains."

"I thought much along the same lines, but its origin isn't important to me. This may sound quite strange for a request, but I would appreciate it if the two of you could trace along it with your fingers. The last time such an event occurred, I regained some of my memories, and I admit feeling curious about whether having the Elite Four – and Miss Kiryuin if I can get her – doing the same will reveal more to me of my identity."

The two seemed to consider my offer slowly. Since I had made sure there was no hint of deception in my voice, Nonon agreed rather quickly, Inumuta not far behind. "Assuming you'd be willing to share the results of this experiment with me, I would be willing to acquiesce to your request, Mr. Isa," the man said, stepping up to a reasonable proximity from me.

"Rou, I have no problems doing as you ask. Despite our enmity outside the room, you've shown yourself to be nothing if not polite to me, even going so far as to tease me light-heartedly. I don't care if it works or not, I don't mind helping you out." I inclined my head at Nonon's words, smiling at her in thanks.

Together, the two commanders reached out and traced the rune on my hand. After they withdrew, nothing happened. However, as soon as I reclined in my seat and opened my mouth to speak, a veritable hurricane of thoughts, conversations, and images stormed into my mind. Grunting in pain as the knowledge organized itself, I held my unblemished hand to my head and recoiled from the headache.

"Fuck, this hurts," I ground out, falling onto the ground from disorientation. My vision went blurry and I nearly lost consciousness as the pressure in my head grew. Just as it peaked and I was sure I would faint from the sharp spikes of pain, it stopped, and I found myself calling up more information on who I had been in the past. The downside: none of it was very pretty.

"Rou, are you alright?" Kurai asked me, and I nodded slowly, trying not to exacerbate any lingering pain that may still be present. Realizing the other two occupants of the room had no idea what or who I was nodding to, I sat up and leaned against the bottom of the chair wearily, sore from the ordeal in places I shouldn't have been.

"Well…" I started after a minute more spent getting my bearings. "I won't be doing that again with more than one person. It feels like I just got vaporized by a speeding train and survived. Fuck me…" I let out a light laugh at the entire situation.

"Rou, are you sure you're alright?" Nonon's voice broke through my haze of murky thoughts and time periods, and I turned my attention to the two humans with me.

"Y-Yeah, I think so. Give me a minute, I've got to sort through some of this shit. It's not looking good right now." Not very many of the memories I had gained had much significance, but I had recalled some conversations with Isshin on my nature as a being.

Around five more increments of normal time passed before Inumuta grew impatient with me. "What have you learned, Isa?" his voice tinged half with sarcasm and half with interest. Now that I had gained my bearings and contemplated how much to tell the two, I looked up into their eyes to speak.

"I suppose I should start this out by expounding on my earlier statement that I was created. From my conversations with one of my two contacts who were present in the past, I've been able to glean the fact that I'm not entirely human, but not much more than that. Now, though, I've discovered just _what _my DNA has been spliced with. It seems that as an infant, a material known to me as a Life Fiber was wound into my being. A number of years later, after I had left the original facility in which I was created, I was spliced with blood from another, similar human, tying us together in a way no one else was."

"I was literally created to be Ryuko's." I dropped the bombshell to a silent room. Before Isshin had carved the rune into my hand in a surgical operation I was barely aware of, he had revealed to me why my regeneration seemed so quick. He also told me that once I turned 8, he had transfused a portion of his daughter's DNA into my own with the intention of bonding us together, doing the same with my own into her. Even though I had never met the girl in person, he made it so we could get along instantly, drawn together by the lure of our missing fibers.

I didn't really understand the science, and I wasn't sure I wanted to even now, still reeling from the idea that my attraction and subsequent relationship with the young Matoi was fabricated. My entire existence was made for the sole purpose of being Ryuko's lover, and I wasn't entirely sure I was comfortable with that.

"W-What do you mean?" Nonon stuttered out, squeaking a little at the words. Inumuta's glasses had fallen off at the gravity of my revelation, and under any other circumstances I would have found such a thing to be immensely amusing.

"I mean," I sighed in resignation, "That though the initial reason for my creation is unknown to me, I learned through the two of you – for a reason that _still _eludes me, since neither of you starred especially in my memories – that my purpose has been altered to that of being Ryuko's lover and partner in her battle against the organization that created me. I don't even think _she _knows that, but I can change that now."

I had come to my decision. Sure, the course of my life was pretty much decided by one man, but I was pretty happy with the choices he had made, unable to really feel too much resentment towards him. Just because I was made for Ryuko didn't mean I was excluded from free thought or importance in any way. I knew on some level that I was made for more than just that, and it didn't take too long to come to terms with it. I supposed that it probably helped I had already come to terms with it once.

"So," I said at last, breaking the silence that had once again fell over the room. "I know you'll probably share this with the other two members of the Four, and Satsuki of course, but can I trust you to keep it quiet from the rest of the student body until tomorrow, when I can tell Ryuko everything I've learned? She deserves to know." I got reluctant nods from the two. Glancing at the clock on the wall, I sighed again, pinching the bridge of my nose. "It's almost time for lunch. I hope you know that Sanageyama is doomed to failure today, right? Ryuko still has a lot to learn, but she's a total badass, and he's going to get his ass handed to him."

Nonon giggled and nodded in response to my words, Inumuta also letting out a soft chuckle in what was the first display of mirth I had seen from the walking database. Quietly, I bid my adieu, leaving the room and continuing down the hall to Mikisugi's classroom to wait for the class to empty. I needed desperately to see Ryuko, even though she was angry at me as it was.

At long last, the bell rang, and the usual flood of students tore out of the classroom to head for the main courtyard, where the battle between Sanageyama and Ryuko was set to take place. Predictably, Mako and Ryuko were the last out, and I pushed myself off from the wall I was leaning against, blocking her way for a second and frowning slightly. "Ryuko…" I tried to say.

"I don't want to hear it, Rou. I don't need your pontification bullshit before something this important, and I have no intention of allowing you to sabotage my battle. I certainly don't need you to be my second, seeing as I'm going to beat this Elite Four asshole right into Hell where he belongs." She made to walk away from me but I grabbed her wrist, my face a façade of fury she hadn't yet seen directed at her. A small part of me felt fear at what I was about to attempt, but I thought I might just be crazy enough to pull it off.

"Ryuko Matoi, let me finish my _fucking_ sentence before you even _try _to brush me off, do you hear me?! First off, I was going to _apologize _to you! Second of all, I was going to _congratulate _you on the _victory _I know you're going to have just this very MINUTE! Lastly, silly girl, I WAS GOING TO _FUCKING _DO THIS!" With that, I crushed my lips to hers, probably shocking her into a sub-comatose state.

As the pure feeling I had put into my actions was about to start to wane, I pulled away from the girl I was created to be with, morphing my face into one of determination. "I know full well you're going to send that bastard to hell, Ryuko. I know _full well _that he was a fucking _fool _to challenge you like that, and that my badass of a girlfriend is going to crush his skinny ass until he can't remember ever _attending _Honnouji Academy. I know full _fucking _well that you don't need me to be your second in this fight! And I want you to know full _fucking _well going in that I've got your back anyway! You know why? It's because I love you, Matoi! You hear that? Now go pound that asshole into the ground so I can tell you what I learned about myself today!"

After my rant finished, I smirked at the shell-shocked expressions on Ryuko's and Mako's faces before storming off towards the courtyard. Once I reached it, I took my place on Ryuko's side of the stadium, leaning against whatever wall I could find with a smirk. Meeting the eyes of Nonon and Inumuta, I winked, smirking widely.

"Your girlfriend get cold feet, Isa?" A far less pleasant voice sounded, and I looked across to see Sanageyama looking as arrogant as ever. My smirk lay unmoving, though, and I simply inclined my head to where a furious Ryuko had stalked up to the stage. I watched as she completely ignored her challenger, striding straight to me and tackling me to the ground with her lips alone. Of course, she was already transformed, likely courtesy of her passion for the fighting we had just performed and anticipation for the battle to come.

"We're not through with our discussion, Isa. Don't you forget that, and we'll talk tonight." I shrugged and picked myself up off the ground, ignoring the mutinous mutterings of the rest of the school's male population and choosing to face a flabbergasted Sanageyama. "Oi, Elite Four prick! You ready to get drilled?!" My smirk was still in full force as the arrogant swordsman responded in kind, activating his Goku Uniform in a mockery of the transformation Ryuko and I undergo.

"Three-Star Goku Uniform, Blade Regalia!" the loathsome man shouted, finishing his transformation. He appeared to be in an olive green monstrosity of armor, holes and slits in all sorts of places and two mounted launchers on the shoulders. A pair of swords – shinai, if I wasn't mistaken – slid out of his gauntlets, and he prepared to fight Ryuko, who stood unimpressed. At the start of the battle, however, I was forced to drop my smirk and adopt a frown.

Sanageyama was much too fast and strong than I had previously calculated. While I had no trouble believing that Ryuko was capable of beating him, I suspected that it would take longer than I had anticipated. As the man grew faster and faster, it was all I could do to follow the suit of armor with my eyes. Eventually, he grew so fast that all that remained were illusions where he stopped for a moment. Foolishly, my girlfriend tried to attack these, only to get thrown about like a ragdoll.

It didn't take long for the elite to gloat, and he stopped moving when Ryuko collapsed to the ground in exhaustion and pain. The fool had apparently decided that the battle was over, and was therefore surprised when a counterattack caught him off balance. Even though not a single attack hit him, he was forced on the defensive. However, just as Ryuko was about to press her advantage, the elite activated his secret skill, causing eye-like shapes to wander under all the various slits and holes in his armor.

I had the distinct feeling of getting examined from all directions, and winced at what this meant for the fight. There was nowhere Ryuko could hide that Sanageyama couldn't see, nowhere that she could attack that he couldn't protect. Moreover, from the shudder that went down my back I guessed that he could guess every move my girlfriend was going to make. It was the perfect stalker.

It didn't take long for the man to start pummeling Ryuko, yelling out where he was going to attack in typical fashion. I sighed at the ridiculousness and leaned forward slightly when I saw Sen detach a part of himself and multiply it, covering every slit on the Regalia. Now he couldn't see. _How ironic, _I thought, _that the one whose greatest strength is sight was crippled by it. _I let out a loud laugh at the comical reaction the elite had.

Needless to say, Ryuko pretty much dominated the fool after that, playing with him only a moment before using her finishing move and decimating his Goku Uniform. Left naked, the man skulked away in shame, and I allowed my smirk to resurface as Ryuko reverted to her original form and spit before walking over to where I was leaning.

"Wanna skip out on class for now? I've got a place we can talk." I knew I was going to be missing an entire day of class at this point, but couldn't bring myself to care. Mikisugi wasn't a good teacher anyway. Nodding, I followed Ryuko through some winding hallways and into the sewers of all places. Mako had tried to follow us, but Ryuko stopped her with one of those looks I couldn't understand no matter how hard I tried.

Once we reached our destination, I gazed about, thinking it was pretty cozy once you got over the fact that we had to travel through several miles of disgusting sewer to get here. Carpets covered the cold stone floor and the only furniture was a luxurious looking couch that appeared as though it had seen better days.

Taking a seat next to an impatient Ryuko was risky, but I valiantly took the job, even allowing the rabid animal she was about to become lean into my side. "So what was all that about, Rou?" she asked, undercurrents of suspicion running through her voice. I cringed at what I was going to have to reveal, and began to tell her about my meeting with the Elite Two, leaving out parts of my conversation for obvious reasons.

I told her about how Nonon Jakuzure had had a crush on me for whatever reason, and after reassuring her that I was hers and hers alone, I told her about the memories. When I told her about the blood, about the connection between the two of us, she grew rigid in my arms and I winced, closing my eyes before continuing in a clinical monotone.

I told Ryuko about my not being entirely human, and about my suspicions on her own body structure. I spoke of her father, his words to me before sealing my memories, and I informed her that I wouldn't be able to get the rest of them back until the actions of the first three had been repeated by Gamagoori, Sanageyama, and Kiryuin, though I suspected I would still be missing a few.

I told her I was created by her father to love her and be loved by her, and finished my tale, waiting for her to leave. For all my confidence, I could be pretty pathetic with my lack of self-esteem sometimes. "You know, if it weren't you telling me all this, Isa, I'd tell you to back the fuck off and never speak to me again," she said at last, breaking through the anxious mess I had become.

"Luckily, it's you that told me this. So you know what I say to all that bullshit that happened in the past? It's nice to know what we have is at least somewhat real, and I'm pretty confident in saying that I love you as well, you big dolt. I suppose it helps that you're a handsome son of a bitch as well." Her voice was tinged with amusement and affection as she relaxed, allowing me to let out the breath I didn't realize I had been holding.

Idly, I started playing with a strand of her hair. "So," I started again, "About that time I kissed you…" Ryuko laughed then, falling into me.

Once she recovered, she stared at me with a look I couldn't quite identify, as I had never seen it before. "That was sexy as hell, you fucker. You had better do it again, and right now, or else I might just have to get angry at you again…" Ah. It was her version of a leer. Seeing no reason not to give in to her desire, I smirked and repeated my actions from earlier, controlling the pace for only the second time in our short relationship.

Hours later, a much more lax couple trudged into the school proper. Nothing too untoward had happened, but regeneration worked wonders when you found you had to breathe less than the normal humans. One thing led to another, and neither of us had come up for air for a _very _long time. In the midst of our mutual passion, our two Kamuis had apparently bonded on a brotherly level, which had nothing to do with how much they were rubbing on each other.

Unfortunately for our continued cloud-like state, Sanageyama chose that moment to ask for a rematch. It seemed he had sewed his own eyes shut to strengthen his senses, and had received an improved Goku Uniform from the Sewing Club. Giving Ryuko one last kiss for luck, I stepped back as she laughed and transformed, schooling her emotions once she had finished and frowning in that way of hers that I found so attractive.

I don't know what I was expecting from that fight. It was more of a slaughter than a fight, though, and my ever-present smirk soon turned into a severe frown as Ryuko was thrown about with ease by the improved uniform and the blind boy. After only a few minutes, Ryuko was panting on the ground, in a crater that she had been shoved into by the strength of the elite. As he prepared to administer the final blow, I stepped in, blocking it even as all the bones in my arm shattered and his uniform overheated at the actions he was demanding from it.

Dropping the now useless appendage to my side, I pulled one of my swords and nullified the aura, fully intent on challenging him to a non-assisted duel of blades. However, I felt a tug on my pant leg by a thoroughly injured Ryuko, and her weak smile and shake of her head halted my actions. Grimacing, I sheathed the sword and grabbed hold of my girlfriend with my working arm, supporting her as we limped off the school grounds.

It seemed that the Elite Four had decided it was time for a change of pace in the battles we now faced, and as the pain in my arm kicked in I tried not to scream from the feeling of a thousand bone fragments digging into the soft tissues of my arm. I knew it would eventually heal, but it would take a long time, and Ryuko sensed my pain, having felt it herself.

Unsurprisingly, it was a shafted Mako who came to our rescue, grabbing both of us under either arm like a pair of ply boards and taking off at Mach 2 to her home. Once our broken bodies had been deposited in the 'clinic' portion of the home, Mr. Mankanshoku started to work on us, wrapping us in all sorts of bandages and trying as usual to get a peek at Ryuko. "If you take advantage of her while we're unconscious, I don't care who you are, you'll be feeling the full power of my blades when I wake up…" I managed to get out before falling into the sweet arms of unconsciousness.


	6. Sometimes You Need To Be Serious

_Chapter 5: Sometimes You Need to be Serious_

**A/N: This is late. By about a month and a half. In the meantime I started another story. Meh. Thanks to LynnStark for pulling my head out my ass with your review (and correspondence after the fact). I finally finished this fucker.**

**I'm not beyond a bit of fan-service here and there, I just refuse to write lemons. They serve no purpose and have no place in the plot. If you want to draw your own 'conclusions' from my 'rendezvous(s)' with Ryuko, go ahead, but I'm not responsible for any injuries you obtain in the process. Oh, and for reference, this starts at around 10:00 into Episode 7 of the anime, in case you're curious.**

**On a related note, some might be wondering how I plan to top the revelation last chapter. Well, I only have to offer you a wide smile and the reminder that I still have 18 episodes left to get through plus an epilogue. Oh, and there's still three more people I need to rub 'my scar'…**

Blearily, I opened my eyes, not quite remembering where I was. Sitting up cautiously, I tried to move my left arm and winced at the soreness the actions wrought. Memories of the battle between Ryuko and Sanageyama leapt to the forefront of my mind, and I realized at once why I felt like shit. "Ugh," I groaned quietly, the sound of my voice a light rasp from disuse. "How long was I out?"

"A couple weeks," I heard the response from in front of me and tried to refocus my vision. "Do try not to scare me like that, asshole." Ah, that had to be Ryuko. "I don't appreciate worrying over whether you're ever going to wake up, and you weren't even the biggest casualty of the day." I shrugged, immediately regretting it as the muted pain jolted through my body.

"I suppose. Sorry for that, by the way. What happened while I was out?" It seemed in my relative hurry to wake up, I had given myself a migraine. Lucky for me, the room was suitably dark, so I blinked a few times to dismiss any lingering black spots and gazed at my girlfriend.

"Well, you might not have noticed, but you're in an actual bed. I had the _brilliant _idea of starting up a Fight Club, one Mako is the President of. Since she gains rank every time we succeed in a certain number of battles, the living situation for the family has increased in standard pretty drastically. Now we live in a quaint little condo in the one-star area. She'll be ever so pleased you've woken up, too, since this way we'll have double the fighting power."

I could sense a 'but' in her tone, and I raised an eyebrow at her, reaching out a hand. Ryuko smiled at me and took it in her own, continuing on after a moment. "But I'm not sure that I'm a fan of this anymore. I did it to help get the Mankanshokus a better state of being than the slums, but Mako has only gotten more and more demanding of my time, and the rest of the family is slowly drifting away. We're close to another promotion, too, and I dread to think of what will happen."

Massaging my temples with my free hand, I hoisted the girl up onto my lap, trying at a smile when she blushed. It _was _the first time we were consciously in a real bed together, after all, and we _were _the only ones in the room for once. "So," I started, the rasp fading from my vocal pattern with every word. "Let me get this straight. You started a club in the hopes of helping the fam, and now they're getting drunk on greed and debauchery?" she nodded, and I sighed. "Fucking figures I'd wake up at a time like this."

"Yeah, it does. Did I mention you're an asshole for that?" I noticed a shift in the tone of my girlfriend's speech, shooting a glance at the only door in the room. Predictably, it was locked, and I pretty much guessed at what was about to happen. Not like I was one to complain about finding myself alone in a bedroom with my fucking hot badass romantic interest.

"I seem to recall you saying something of the sort. I take it you've got a couple of weeks of buildup to rel – Mmph!" My quip was interrupted by the arrival of Ryuko's lips. Seated sideways on me with her feet hanging off the side of the bed, I belatedly realized that she was only in her pajamas, and that it was dead midnight outside. I also realized I was wearing pretty much nothing under the sheets. _Well, this ought to be interesting, _I thought before I could get too distracted. _Sen's going to kill me when he finds out about this, and Kurai's going to be insufferable about my luck. Stupid amorous Kamui of mine._

(((…***…***…***…)))

When I woke up in the morning, Ryuko was snuggled in next to me. After making sure all my clothes were in their proper places, I looked to make sure the same was true for her and did a bit of a double take. While I was fully clothed, Ryuko was only covered from the waist down, and the sheets had shifted quite a bit since our… adventure. As a result, when I sat up, I got a view that not many have had, and after blinking a bit to make sure the event was firmly in my memory I laid back down, closing my eyes and wrapping an arm around her.

"Mmmh," Ryuko groaned aloud. "Five more minutes…" I tried not to laugh at the cliché saying, instead tightening my hold and dragging her closer to me.

"Good morning, Ryuko. It's time to wake up and go to school. Just think about how exciting all those wonderful 'fights' are going to be. Oh, and we might want to locate your shirt before we go, since it seems to have disappeared over night." My girlfriend tensed as my words sunk in, throwing off my embrace and hopping out of bed.

"G-Good morning, R-Rou," she stuttered, a hearty blush covering the better portion of her face. Raising an eyebrow, I relaxed myself against an arm, letting the sheets pool around my waist and revealing my own bare chest. "Don't ever tell anyone about this!"

I snorted. "As if I would ever share the memory of my beautiful girlfriend sleeping next to me without a shirt with any of those perverts at school. Come to think of it, I'm shirtless as well." It took a lot of effort to stare Ryuko in the face, especially since she was so far away from me. Granted, she had since covered up, but I was still enticed by the sight since she had chosen one of my few undershirts. "Besides, it would kind of tarnish your reputation as an honest-to-God badass."

"Put a shirt on!" she called frantically, ignoring my statement in her panic. I looked around, but realized that she was wearing the only one that wasn't dirty and got out of the bed, stretching and moaning when my back cracked. Scratching my neck, I stared at her some more. "Well? What's stopping you?"

"You're wearing my shirt," I said, raising my other eyebrow and smiling, unfazed through a combination of lethargy and apathy. Ryuko looked down at herself and blushed when she saw I was correct. "I suppose you'd like for me to turn around?" she nodded and I rolled my eyes, acquiescing nonetheless. "It's nothing I didn't see five minutes ago, and it's quite the beautiful upper body anyways, but I'll do as you ask anyway."

"S-Shut up and put on your damned shirt!" she yelled, throwing the offending garment at me and slamming the door on her way out before realizing that all her clothes were in here as well. Pulling on Kurai bit by bit, I barely noticed her slip back into the room, holding my own idle conversation with the Kamui. Just as I had predicted, he was making a big fuss about how lucky I was and how he wished he had human parts.

"Really, Kurai? You know she's in the room, right? Unless you want to mate with Sen, but I don't think he'd appreciate that very much since the only thing he has in common with a female is the shape he's been created to take." Kurai sniffed indignantly, making sure to tighten himself around me uncomfortably in retaliation. "Is that really necessary, ass? Damn, you don't know how to take a joke, do you?"

Unfortunately for my first friend and me, Ryuko had been paying more attention to us than we had realized or suspected. "Why is your Kamui such a pervert?" she asked, a scarily innocent tone in her voice that made me shiver despite the situation. I didn't dare look around to find her, instead responding carefully.

"Hell if I know, Ryuko. He wasn't like this until we met you and Mako. Then again, we hadn't had much contact with any humans until meeting the two of you. He'll likely be tense like this the rest of his life too, since he can't exactly relieve himself of his libido like we can." I knew my allusion would have made her blush, and hoped that she wouldn't attack me because of it.

I was wrong, and a slender fist hurtled towards my bicep, impacting it with a thud and shoving me to the side. "Damn girl, you pack a punch. Was it really necessary to punch me so hard the day after I wake up from the coma? You're going to put me right back into one at this rate!"

"I hope so. Come on then, pussy, we're going to be late if we don't hurry and the great Mako is going to be pissed since we'll be missing 'fighting time'." I could sense the quotes in her voice and turned to follow her out the door. She was faster than me, though, and I soon found myself struggling to catch up, falling behind with every minute that passed. _Stupid coma, _I thought. _Stupid atrophied muscles._

"Oi, wait up! I've still got two weeks of no movement to make up for!" I called, in a slight panic, but Ryuko just ignored me. With a groan, I forced myself into a jog, trying to keep up with my now annoyed girlfriend. "Alright, alright, I'm sorry, okay? My joke was in poor taste – both of them were, really."

I stumbled and fell to the ground in a heap when Ryuko stopped suddenly. At first I thought there was danger ahead, but when I raised my eyes to look at her she just had this expression of longsuffering on her face that made me wince, knowing full well I had caused such a reaction. My thoughts spiraled into a marvelously shaped ravine of guilt and self-hate, and then she hugged me and the ravine shifted into a confusing inverted mess. _There's no way I'll understand this girl to the fullest extent, _I thought sardonically. _Made to be hers or not._

"Just don't do it again, Rou," she spoke at last, her voice both hard and soft in a weird union of scolding and understanding. "Now I know how everyone else feels when I do the same thing."

"You know I can't promise that, but I _can _promise that I'll try my best to withhold any of my more… inappropriate… jokes." I enjoyed her embrace for a few minutes longer before speaking again. "So now we're done with all the awesome sappy stuff, can we move a bit slower on the way to school this morning? I'm still a bit weak from that extended slumber I inadvertently had. Still don't know why I was asleep for so long; probably had something to do with the freaking amnesia."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," she replied, equal parts anxious and amused. "You always do with these things, in the time I've known you. And no, we can't slow down. You'll understand once you see Mako." Ah. There's the bitter smile that more than hinted something was going wrong with our mutual friend, and I had a suspicion I knew what it was. A rapid increase in the standard of living for a family that grew up poor was almost guaranteed to corrupt their thought processes, and Mako was likely going through the brunt of it, greedy for more and more power.

Outwardly, I sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I hope you're going to make it up to me soon; I'm feeling kind of slighted by all this…" I was joking again, of course, and we both knew it.

"Like I made it up to you last night?" the innocence reflected in Ryuko's tone made me blush slightly.

"I had certainly hoped so," I mumbled away from her, but it seemed she had heard me anyway, taking my arm and leaning her head on my shoulder.

"Well I'm sure we can just make that a regular occurrence then, you handsome bastard." Was that a hint of excitement I heard? Surely not, but I wasn't too eager to ruin the moment by asking, instead contented to hurry my pace alongside my surprisingly clingy girlfriend. We still had a fifteen minute walk ahead of us to reach the school, after all.

(((…***…***…***…)))

"It's about time you two showed up! You won't be attending any of your classes today, oh no! You're going to be finishing off the rest of the clubs all day today, and no breaks will be allowed! And don't make any excuses! Isa, you might've missed a couple weeks because of your stupid recklessness, but you certainly won't be missing any more while I'm Fight Club President!" I winced. After she finished, Mako herded us towards a giant pit teeming with students.

"You know, Ryuko?" I said on the way down, having been pushed in by the eccentric, power-hungry girl. "Somehow I get the feeling this was your idea. I shouldn't listen to your ideas anymore. They always get us in trouble."

"Shut up and fight, asshole," she snarled back at me grumpily. "Let's see you come up with something better, Mr. Coma." I snorted and shrugged, unsheathing my swords once I hit the ground and bringing them up in an instant parry. Usually it was easy to take care of the two-stars, but there were too many for me to really tank the battle.

"It's not as if I have a choice here, Ryuko. I can't always be around to keep you malleable and in check." I was being deliberately infuriating in the hopes that she'd get all aggressive and end this faster. As I thought about it, I had to curse myself for the twisted logic I was displaying. I was starting to sound like I belonged here, and I was _supposed _to be the level-headed one!

"Malleable?! I'll show you malleable after I cut off your legs!" I sighed inwardly at what I had done to myself. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have teased her about my being unconscious for two weeks, but I couldn't help it under the circumstances. Cutting down another three students with a single slash of my blades, I twirled around and back flipped towards my girlfriend, meeting her halfway.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. You're a badass and hard as a brick. No need to get all angry at me, it'll only make this worse." We only had a few more left, and I was starting to doubt Mako's statement that we'd be fighting all day when a gate opened at the other end of the pit we were in and a seemingly endless stream of two-stars flew through it. "How many clubs does this school _have?!"_ I complained with a huff.

"Ass, you were asleep when that happened. Apparently the great and mighty Kiryuin bitch offered whoever could beat us a three-star uniform, so the clubs all disbanded and started new ones to combat you and me." I sighed again, audibly this time and ejected the auras to my blades, crossing them against the wave of enemies that crashed towards me on my side.

"Whatever. I hope you're keeping count of how many you've annihilated. We'll have to compare later for shits and giggles. It's not like there'll be anything else to do with the numbers, anyway." Ryuko's response was carried away by the wind as we were forcibly separated by two tsunamis' worth of students colliding over us. My blades whistled through their ranks with deadly accuracy as I dodged and flipped over whatever pathetic attacks the two-stars threw at me.

After an eternity, the flow of the mob slowed to a trickle, and I met up with Ryuko again in the middle. "How much do you want to bet the Mankanshokus go mad with power and privilege after this shit?" My girlfriend snorted in dark amusement and elbowed me.

"Watch your left, asshole. How embarrassing would it be for you to get knocked out by one of these fucks?" I laughed and lunged in the general diection she had called out, satisfying myself with the rather high-pitched scream that issued from an obviously-male mouth.

"I could say the same for you, Ryuko! How much more of this do we have, anyway?"

"Oh, this should be about it for today. Why do you ask?" I nudged her and pointed ahead of me. She turned around and her eyes widened. "Oh, you have _got _to be kidding me." Indeed. The trickle of students had once again broadened to a veritable flood, and I winced at the volume of her exclamation. "Enough is enough, already!"

"I wholeheartedly agree, babe. Seems to me that we have a few more hours after all. Afterwards, want to beat up Mikisugi?"

"Don't call me babe, and yeah. You know just the way to my heart." Her tone was oddly pleased, and I shrugged.

"What can I say? I was made for you, beautiful."

(((…***…***…***…)))

Later that day, after all the fighting was over, we found out that Mako had successfully petitioned for a higher standard of living. We should have figured that even after all that bullshit at school we would be forced to do more work, moving all the family's belongings into a mansion where the rest of the two-stars lived.

Truthfully, the whole situation sickened me. I was asleep for two weeks and already the family that took me in was falling apart. I understood that Ryuko had only wanted to help out with everything, and I couldn't really bring myself to blame her, but this was out of control. Two weeks, and the guys in the family didn't peep on Ryuko _once _anymore.

Dinner that night was quiet. All but Ryuko and I were 'busy' with various things during the night, and I was close to bursting at the audacity of them all. They abandoned all pretense of a warm, welcoming environment all because they had a little money and a bigger house. There wasn't a single upside to the entire situation, even though I got to sleep with my girlfriend every night without fail nor interruption.

That isn't to say we engaged in intercourse; rather, we literally slept. We didn't have energy for much else after the day we had had, and were looking forward to a night's sleep in each other's arms. "You know," I murmured once Ryuko had climbed into bed next to me and I laid an arm around her waist. "I wish I hadn't made that bet earlier. This is just depressing."

"Shut up, Isa," the girl responded sleepily. "I'm trying to ignore it and you aren't helping, but yeah, it's fucking depressing. It's my fault, too. If only I hadn't started up the Fight Club…" she trailed off, and I sighed, kissing her neck comfortingly.

"No one blames you for this, least of all me. You couldn't have known how greedy your friend would become, and I'm sure we'll find a way out of this somehow. I have a feeling there's still a lot more to this story left anyway." Ryuko hummed indifferently and snuggled deeper into my chest, turning around and burying her face in it.

"I hope you're right, Rou. I don't know how long I'll be able to live with all this emptiness. At least you're still here."

"Yup. And I don't have any plans whatsoever to leave. You're pretty much everything to me, and I don't really see any alternatives to the situation." I felt her smile and squeezed her lightly.

"I think you're an idiot, but I'll try not to complain too much. Now go to sleep already, I'm tired of talking to you." I harrumphed quietly but closed my eyes anyway, resting my chin on top of Ryuko's head with a small grin. My last thoughts before unconsciousness were less pleasant, wondering how this would all get resolved. I knew it wouldn't be pretty, and could only ponder which side of the spectators I would end up on.

An alarm blared. A hand shot out and silenced it, only for one on the other side to screech. I tried to reach it but found myself unable to lift my arm, so merely groaned instead. I was deathly sore from the previous day, and I supposed that this one wouldn't be much better. Worse, even, since everything _already _hurt.

"Come on, Isa, get up. I have to piss, you've gotta let go of me." I groaned again at Ryuko's voice, knowing she'd be annoyed with my answer. I tried to avoid the situation by pulling myself away from her; however, when I got close I failed and collapsed atop her with a huff of exhaustion. "What's the holdup?" she asked impatiently.

"I can't move my arms," I muttered petulantly. "How am I supposed to deal with this atrophy?" My response was met with a cynical snort and a shove from my girlfriend. Unfortunately, she pushed a bit harder than necessary, and I toppled off the side of the bed with a yelp, smashing my temple against the corner of the bedside table in the process.

"Rou!" Ryuko shrieked slightly, but only slightly. Before I had a chance to respond, she showered me with questions. I guessed she was still a bit worried about my falling into another coma, though this one would _actually _be her fault.

"Ugh," I moaned in pain, clutching the wound with a hand, having landed with that arm poised to do such an action. "Fuck, I'm bleeding from that! You _trying _to kill me, woman?" Her eyes filled with tears above me, and in a surprising show of strength considering my debilitated state, I leaned forward and met her lips with my own. "I'll be fine, sorry. I might have a headache or three, but once I get some food in me I should be able to move again. Or maybe some of you in me, whatever comes first."

"Hmph! If you can be this lewd already, I think you're fine, asshole. You shouldn't worry me like that. And besides," she continued quietly, almost too softly for me to hear. "If anything _you'll _be the one inside _me._" My eyes widened comically and I stared at her, pain long forgotten in the innuendo uttered by my girlfriend.

"W-What? I-I don't quite think I'm ready for that kind of thing, beautiful." Truthfully, I wasn't sure I was prepared for what she had referenced. I had mixed feelings about it, and a really bad one about timing the action. I felt there was still more to do before we engaged in such… activity.

Ryuko blushed deeply at my reaction. "Y-You weren't supposed to h-hear that!" she stuttered at me. Suddenly able to move, I dodged out of the way of a thrown pillow, then ducked when one of the two alarm clocks followed, narrowly missing my head. "And don't think you'll be able to stop me!" I grimaced.

"Isn't that rape?" I questioned bitterly. "Made for you or not, I don't know if I'd be able to deal with that. I might be a guy, but that doesn't mean I'm _purely _a sexual creature. I just have a bad feeling about it, I guess. Like something really bad would happen if we hadn't both accepted the action prior to actually… you know… coupling."

Ryuko gaped at me as I turned and stormed out the door, too angry to stay. I wasn't sure why exactly her remark had so influenced me, but I suspected strongly one of the main causes was the remaining gap in my memory. Though I had most of my childhood down and the events leading up to the amnesia surgery itself, I was still missing a massive chunk spanning about a year and a half between the two events.

_Whatever, _I thought with a frown. _I shouldn't worry about this shit so early in the morning. Besides, I've got to apologize to her for snapping. She didn't deserve it, and Kurai is in the bedroom anyways. It was my own damn fault for making a joke in the first place. _I sighed and slid down the wall outside the room. I had really messed things up, even though my brain kept telling me it wouldn't be that bad.

"Bah!" I exhaled in a harrumph of weariness and anger at myself. "Enough moping, bastard. Get up and walk through the door already." Regardless, it took another good five minutes to muster the courage to stand and put my hand on the doorknob to the bedroom. I took a deep breath, then another, and my hand shook as I turned the obtrusion of wall to swing it open.

I walked through the opening as a man would to the gallows, trying desperately not to look anywhere but the floor in my fear and anxiety. "I'm sorry," I mumbled at the ground, standing in the center of the room awkwardly. The carpet made such a nice pattern after all. "I shouldn't have snapped, and I don't really know why I did. It was just teasing, and I guess you hit a chord that I didn't know I had. So sorry, you didn't deserve that."

The silence in the room deafened me, and I started to fidget as it compressed me further into the abyss. I dared not look up or around, and I hardly breathed. Suddenly, I felt arms wrap around me from behind. Stiffening, I was tense at the unexpected movement. "I'm sorry too, Rou. I shouldn't have said what I did, even if it _was_ a joke." The rest of my girlfriend followed her arms, and I slowly relaxed as she pressed herself into my back, laying her head along my shoulder blade.

Neither of us were in any hurry to move, so I settled into position with my hand on her entwined arms. Eventually, though, we had to move, and I pried her off of me reluctantly. "I guess we'll just have to be more careful from now on. Past that, we could always simply ignore it and keep in mind there are some things we shouldn't say to each other, even in jest. Sound good?" I felt rather than saw her nod, and spun to lay a kiss on the top of her head. "Good. Now I've to get dressed. Wanna watch, or are you gonna step out for a bit?"

Ryuko blushed and mumbled that she'd like to stay; grinning, I pecked her on the nose and skipped my way over to a hanging Kurai. He was rolling his eyes at the drama that had undoubtedly unfolded in front of him, and I wondered how he had managed to keep his mouth shut through it all. My Kamui snorted as I slipped him on, and once he was settled he constricted slightly unpleasantly around my middle.

"Oof!" I exhaled rather sharply. "What the hell's that for, man?" I asked him, indignant at the pain he had caused.

"You had a girl as beautiful as that practically throwing herself at you, and you just made her angry instead! Come on Rou, the least you could do is give _me _some action to watch! I get lonely too, you know!" His voice was as muted as he could dare without my having to strain to hear, and I threw a glance over my shoulder to see a beet red Ryuko in the doorway. Unable to determine if she was just embarrassed at having watched me or if she had overheard my long-time perverted friend, I simply shrugged and wiggled my crotch into place.

I harrumphed on the way back over to my girlfriend, chuckling as Kurai's pleas for me to give in to my 'baser, human primality' became more and more desperate. Eventually, as I drew too close for him to continue speaking safely, he stopped and simmered lightly, heating up in uncomfortable places and causing me to blush from the sudden change in temperature of certain… anatomical areas… of my body.

"To school?" I offered my arm, trying valiantly to ignore both my worked-up Kamui and the way Ryuko's own set of clothing was adjusting itself to accentuate her more… feminine… parts. Unfortunately, it seemed the world itself was against me as my girlfriend not only grabbed my arm with both of hers, but crushed her rather ample chest to my side, blinking up at me with an adorably innocent smile we _both _knew was a front.

This time, I couldn't restrain my groan of tense self-control. "You're really testing me here, babe," I muttered under my breath.

"What was that?" she inquired with a higher-than-normal tone, wriggling against my side as we exited the building and causing me to look towards the sky with a withering glare, cursing anyone and everyone that could be watching and laughing at my torment. My girlfriend giggled and leaned even further against me, causing me to adjust myself uncomfortably and involuntarily glance towards her.

Her eyes were wide with an innocent gleam, and she had a smile a mile wide. In her commotions, her Kamui had shifted a bit, and Sen had apparently acquiesced to her motion, riding himself up so I caught a tantalizing view of most of my girlfriend's breasts. Making a gurgling noise deep in my throat, I turned to her face to relieve my hormones, but I was distracted quite firmly by the way she ran her tongue along her lips, the gleam in her eyes softening to a smouldering glower that forced me into a keening sigh as I looked anywhere but next to me.

Kurai sensed my agitation as well, adding his own two cents by tightening along my crotch and chest. "Urgh," I grunted at the sudden restricting force, and a light brush told me Ryuko had noticed my arousal through my now-taut clothing. Once again cursing just about everything that lived, had lived, and will ever have lived on this rock, I finally gave in to my 'baser, human primality', having lasted a whole 60 seconds since leaving the house.

I suppose I should have been proud of that, but I was distracted by the burning passion of my girlfriend's lips on mine, her legs wrapping about my waist and grinding against the bulge in my pants with a moan in my mouth. I moaned right on back, pushing her (and by extension myself) into the nearest alleyway and occupying myself with the sensation of closeness between our bodies. _I guess we're going to be late to school today… _My thoughts trailed off into nothingness when clothes started flying.

(((…***…***…***…)))

Disheveled, my girlfriend and I walked through the gate of our dictatorial place of education with springs in our step and hands entwined at our sides. Looking up at me with a shit-eating grin, Ryuko pulled up my fly and kissed the corner of my mouth. "Is it still rape _now, _pretty boy?" She whispered into my ear, tone playful and promising at the same time. I groaned throatily at the sound, pulling her in for one last steamy kiss in the middle of the courtyard.

"I think not, princess," I whispered back, my own voice deep and breathy, my eyes wide with suppressed anticipation. Ryuko shuddered and slapped my arm half-heartedly for the embrace, and it was then we realized the rounded enclave we had wandered into was dead silent, though perhaps it was the tumbleweed blowing into me that alerted us to the present situation.

Warily, we separated, each of us blushing red as a tomato as the wolf whistles started. On all sides, we were surrounded by a roaring crowd, and I was eerily reminded of a Roman-style coliseum, especially when I saw Miss Kiryuin reclining on a cushioned stone slab, a crown of laurels on her regal head with some random peons fanning her with palm leaves.

Nudging Ryuko, I gestured to our esteemed Student Council president and we sweat-dropped in unison, our grins still in place, strangely enough. Just as we made to demand what was going on, however, a massive shockwave knocked us over, and we stood to the startling sight of a decked-out Mako. She was wearing her very own Two-Star uniform, and I grimaced at the arrogance on her face. The crowd, now loud and boisterous, fell silent at the upraised hand of their fearless leader as she stood, somehow managing to look imperious and formal in the seemingly normal action.

"Welcome, Ryuko Matoi and Rou Isa. Welcome to the last battle of your little Fight Club. Today, I have offered your… friend… Mankanshoku the privilege of a Three-Star Goku uniform in exchange for beating you in single combat. Isa, you're included only as a stand-in for your dearest girlfriend over there in case she gets too rattled to continue."

With that, Satsuki sank right back down into her seat, causing me to snort and turn towards Ryuko, who was staring sadly at Mako. "Hey," I murmured, distracting her from the admittedly pitiful sight in front of her. "We talked about this. You know what to do." She nudged my shoulder in gratitude, and I squeezed her hand before dropping it and stepping back into the shadows of the stands. Spotting the rest of the Mankanshokus in the audience, I hardened my gaze and made my way over to them in silence.

"Sir, ma'am. Runt," I growled, laying a hand on their shoulders as they looked up at me fearfully. "You had better not interfere in this… _game_…" I hissed the last part, my grip on the father tightening painfully. "You won't like what happens then, I guarantee that much…" The family nodded quickly, their sense of preservation strong despite their greed in the situation they had made for themselves.

Once I was certain they weren't going to make a bigger mess of things, I departed from their presence, passing through the shadows around the bleachers to stand next to Nonon and Inumuta, both of whom looked rather bored with the proceedings. "Afternoon," I greeted, leaning against the wall in between them with a smirk. "It's a good thing I planned for this eventuality, isn't it?"

The twos' heads snapped to mine, and I sensed victory a moment before it came. "How could you have possibly seen this coming?" Nonon inquired, astounded moreso at my statement than my presence. Inumuta simply nodded, and I had a feeling it was just for the acknowledgment that I was at least on par with his formidable intelligence. I shrugged in response to my two frenemies.

"Power corrupts, especially when given in such a massive quantity to ones as poor as the Mankanshokus. To make matters worse, they don't know how to handle it, and the freedom fills their minds to the point they lose what little free thought they already had. It makes for an ugly sight, and thankfully I've discussed this with Ryuko. I just wished that it could have waited until a bit later past my… encounter… with her." My face adopted a light blush against my will as my mind brought up memories of the alley rendezvous I had had with my girlfriend.

I was brought back to reality rather forcefully by a fiercely placed slap on my chest, causing the air to whoosh out of me rather impressively. Unable to respond properly, I keeled over as Inumuta snickered. Glaring at Nonon for her actions, I was caught off guard by the _remorse _she showed for having hit me, and I would have groaned had I been able to do much else than gasp for air.

Regaining some measure of oxygenation in my lungs, I straightened to eye level with the rather short girl, glaring all the while. "Was that _really _necessary?" I panted with a fair quantity of sarcasm. She rolled her eyes but still managed to look repentant, and I was able to groan at last, letting loose a throaty sound of exasperation.

"Yours is the last sex life I want to hear about, let alone see displayed on your face for all to see!" she retorted, and it was my turn to roll my eyes with a snort.

"Well, if you're going to get so bent out of shape about it, why don't you ask her for a threesome?" I fired back, causing her to blush beet red as Inumuta choked on his spit on my other side, I presumed because of the ridiculousness of the statement itself.

"Maybe I will!" her stuttered riposte took me a moment to decipher, and once I did I simply raised an eyebrow and half-smiled in her direction at my victory in the small battle with the Elite Two. Well, really, I was only engaged in my verbal sparring with one of them, but my comments made the other lose his impressive composure, so I considered that a victory in and of itself.

"Well, you get right on that then. In the meantime, much as I'm loathe to admit it, we have to watch Ryuko get the snot beaten out of her by her first and closest friend ('outside of myself,' I muttered under my breath, 'not that that means much outside of the… risqué… activity'). Hopefully I won't need to intervene, but this _should _work, in theory."

Ignoring the two from here on out, I turned my full attention to the field just in time to see a massive fist slam into Ryuko. I winced as she went flying, unable to tear my eyes away as she smiled in the face of her pain and then stood to receive another punch. Though we had indeed discussed this strategy together, it was one thing to ponder out loud and quite another to put into action. It was quite painful in my chest cavity to lay eyes upon my now bruised and battered girlfriend.

Eventually (it seemed an eternity, but in reality was only likely around ten minutes of brutally one-sided destruction), Mako slowed her assault, the hits losing a modicum of their power as Ryuko's serene smile among the blood and dirt marring her face began to take its toll upon the young girl. Even the staunchest supporters of this charade could plainly see things were not going to turn out well for the Kiryuin girl in her endeavor, and I knew then I would not be required to perform out there as well.

Regardless, when Mako collapsed into Ryuko's arms, tears staining her eyes and cheeks, I adopted a powerfully confident gait and strode out to the two of them, hesitating only a moment before pulling them both into my own embrace. The girls stiffened until they saw my own soft and comforting posturing of facial muscle, relaxing. After a minute of silent sobs, Mako detached from my girlfriend and tackled me to the ground with another hug, this one direct and rather surprising.

Helpless, I directed a silent inquiry to Ryuko, who simply shrugged. Groaning internally, I awkwardly patted the girl's back before letting go and gently pushing her off me. "Oi, Mako, we've still got shite to do and hopes to crush. We can have a happier and lengthier reunion later, but for now, please focus on the task at hand." My words brought the despondency out of our hyper friend, and she brightened visibly, throwing off her Goku uniform in order to stand defiantly before the Elite Four and denounce the Fight Club itself.

Once again ignoring the fireworks, I spun and approached my girlfriend, worry evident on my features to anyone who bothered to look at me. "Hey," I whispered. "Even though we both knew it was coming, I really regret having to see that. It hurt me as much as it did you to take so many blows like that." Gingerly, I brushed some hair out of her eyes.

"Shut up, you," she replied, a pink but noticeable tint in her stained cheeks. "If my face didn't hurt so much, I'd tell you to kiss me, but I suppose we could just do that later. In the meantime, how was your chat with your dear Nonon and her friend?" I blushed my own way at the subtle reminder to our activities earlier that morning.

"We jabbed at each other. She might ask you to join in on our next session of alley exploring, but I trust you'll deny her properly. I'm not sharing you with anybody, no matter her intention!" That was twisting things a little bit, but I succeeded in getting a wry grin out of my girlfriend before she moaned in pain from the action. Wincing again, I just pulled her into me and turned back to a now-nearly-naked Mako as she threw her old uniform in the air.

"Should I do the honors or will you?" I asked, pointing to the still-rising uniform. Ryuko shrugged, and I took that as encouragement to transform as she followed me close behind. I guess we'd both be doing the honors. Spiraling upwards, the two of us pulled our respective blades up and through the offending garment in a respectable show of power and grace before using each other as a springboard to flip over and land, our Kamuis laughing loudly as we descended, fireworks lighting the sky.

"Well, that's one thing taken care of," I snorted, reverting to my mostly-clothed form as my girlfriend did the same. Each of us took one of Mako's arms, and I lent her Kurai's coat since Ryuko didn't exactly have any spare fabric. "What's next?"


End file.
